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"the  xMEETIXG  of  sir  JOHN  GILBERT  AND  RALEIGh"— Pa^e    69 


SIR 

WALTER  RALEIGH 


BY 

BEATRICE   MARSHALL 


With  Frontispiece  in  Color  and  Eight 
Black-and-White  Illustrations 


NEW  YORK 

FREDERICK  A.  STOKES  COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 


Copyright^  1914,  by 
Frederick  A.  Stokes  Company 


All  Rights  Reserved 


August,  1914. 


Contents 


CHAPTER 

I.  Boyhood 


II.  At  Sea  and  in  Ireland    . 

III.  Favoueite  of  the  Queen 

IV.  Lord  Warden  of  the  Stannaries     . 
V.  Newfoundland  and  Virginia  . 

VI.  The  Scattering  of  the  Armada  and  the 
TO  Lisbon     ..... 
VII.  Raleigh  and  Spenser 

VIII.  The  'Revenge,'  and  Raleigh's  Marriage 
IX.  The  'Madre  de  Dios' 
X.  Sherborne  and  Guiana   . 
IX.  The  Sacking  of  Cadiz 
XII.  The  Island  Voyage 

XIII.  Fall  of  Essex  .... 

XIV.  Queen  Elizabeth's  Last  Days 
XV.  Plots  and  Conspiracies  . 

XVI.  Raleigh's  Trial  at  Winchester,  1603 

XVII.  The  Reprieve  .... 

XVIII.  The  Eagle  in  his  Cage    . 
^       XIX.  'The  History  of  the  World'  . 

O  3 

Wo 


Expedition 


PAGE 
7 


Contents 


PAGE 
CHAPTER 

1-12 
XX.  Raleigh  Released 

XXI.  Guiana  Again ^^^ 

XXII.  A  Chapter  of  Disasters ^^^ 

XXIII.  Gondomar's  Letters ^^^ 

XXIV.  Raleigh    defends    himself    in    Letters    to    Lord 

Carew 1^« 

XXV.  Betrayal ^'^^ 

XXVI.  The  End ^^^ 


Illustrations 


The   Meeting  of  Sir  John   Gilbert   and   Raleigh    Frontispiece 

PAGE 

Raleigh  casting  his  new  Cloak  of  Plush  and  Ermine  across 

the  muddy  Street          .....••  20 
Raleigh    presiding   over   the   Stannaries   Parliament   of 

Devon  and  Cornwall  .....••  24 

Raleigh  riding  with  the  Queen  at  Tilbury  Camp        .          .  42 

The  Battle  between  the  Spanish  Fleet  and  the  'Revenge'  58 

Breast-high  in  the  Surf  he  led  the  Attack         ...  90 
Raleigh's  Coach  stormed  by  the  Mob        .            .          .          .114 

He  was  carried  ashore  in  his  Litter          .            ...  156 

He  saluted  Captain  King  as  he  was  entering  the  Boat          .  178 


One  of  the  gallantest  worthies  that  ever  England  bred 

Aubrey 

God  has  made  nobler  heroes,  but  He  never  made  a  finer 
gentleman  than  Sir  Walter  Raleigh       R.   L.    Ste\  enson 


CHAPTER  I:  Boyhood 

THERE  never  was  a  time  when  so  many- 
great  men  lived  in  England  as  in  the 
'spacious  times'  of  Queen  Elizabeth. 
Our  hearts  thrill  with  pride  when  we  read  about 
those  gallant  men:  those  soldiers,  seamen,  and 
merchant-adventurers,  great  poets,  play-writers, 
and  scholars,  of  whom  Shakespeare  was  the  sjreatest 
of  all. 

It  must  have  been  a  glorious  time  to  live  in,  we 
think,  that  time  when  there  were  new  worlds  to 
discover,  and  when  nearly  every  crew  that  set  sail  in 
their  ships  from  British  harbours  went  on  a  voyage 
of  discovery,  and  reached  unknown  countries  over- 
seas and  saw  strange  beasts  and  found  wonderful 
treasures — gold  nuggets,  pearls  and  coral — which 
the  sailors  brought  home  with  them  to  their  humble 
native  fishing  villages. 

Near  one  of  these  little  villages  on  the  red  coast 
of  Devon  there  stood  (and  it  stands  to-day)  a  pleas- 
ant farm-house  with  thatched  gabled  roof,  and 
latticed  diamond-paned  windows  on  either  side  of  a 
carved  stone  porch.  A  long  sunny  garden  path, 
flagged  with  white  stones  and  flanked  with  sun- 
flowers, hollyhocks  and  tall  white  lilies,  leads  up  to 
the  oaken  door  with  its  big  iron  nails  and  massive 
knocker. 

This  house  is  Hayes  Farm,  near  Budleigh-Salter- 
ton,  famous  as  the  birthplace  of  one  of  the  most  pic- 
turesque heroes  of  the  Elizabethan  period — Walter 
Raleigh,  who  was  born  there  in  the  wainscotted 
chamber  above  the  porch.     The  year  of  his  birth  is 

7 


Sir  IValter  Raleigh 

not  certain,  but  1552  is  generally  accepted  as  the 
most  probable  date. 

It  was  a  small  house  for  so  large  a  family,  for 
Raleigh's  father,  another  Walter,  had  been  married 
three  times.  His  first  wife,  Joan  Drake  (a  cousin 
of  the  great  admiral),  gave  him  two  sons,  John  and 
George;  his  second  wife,  a  daughter,  Mary;  and 
lastly,  Katharine,  widow  of  Sir  Otho  Gilbert  of 
Compton  Castle  and  mother  of  the  brave  explorer. 
Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert,  brought  him  four  sons,  of 
whom  Walter  was  the  second,  his  brother  Carew 
being  two  years  older. 

Love  of  the  sea  and  everything  belonging  to  it 
was  born  in  his  blood.  His  kinsmen  were  the 
Champernouns,  Gilberts,  Grenvilles  and  Carews, 
sea-faring  names  that  will  never  die.  His  Cham- 
pernoun  cousins  were,  most  of  them,  hardy  sea- 
rovers,  gentlemen  of  noble  descent,  who  sailed 
their  own  ships,  and  searched  for  the  North-west 
passage  to  Cathay,  plundered  Spanish  galleons, 
and  carried  off  cargoes  of  treasure  and  negroes. 

Let  us  picture  the  young  Raleigh,  as  an  artist  of 
our  own  day  has  painted  him  for  us,  a  slender,  long- 
legged  boy  in  doublet  and  hose,  with  a  small  ruff 
tightly  encircling  the  pointed  oval  of  his  dark  hand- 
some face.  We  see  this  boy  riding  to  the  Grammar 
School  in  a  neighbouring  town,  through  the  fresh- 
ness of  the  morning  and  between  the  high-banked 
Devonshire  lanes,  with  a  servant  behind  him 
carrying  his  books;  we  see  him  coming  home  in 
the  afternoon  and,  after  a  hearty  meal  of  spiced 
beer  and  slices  from  a  crusty  home-baked  coun- 
try loaf,   spread   with   honey   and   clotted    cream, 


Boyhood 


running  off  again  as  fast  as  his  long  legs  would 
carry  him,  through  Budleigh  village,  past  the 
noble  old  parish  church  where  he  worshipped 
on  Sundays,  over  lush,  marshy  meadows,  never 
stopping  till  he  came  to  the  shelving  white  beach  of 
Salterton  and  his  first  love,  the  blue,  wide  sea.  What 
joy  it  was  to  sit  on  the  beach  among  the  lobster 
pots  with  his  pointed  chin  resting  on  his  knees,  while 
the  sailors  mended  their  nets  and  talked  of  those  far- 
away lands  across  the  Atlantic  and  of  the  marvels 
that  they  had  seen  there.  How  eagerly  the  boy 
drank  in  tales  of  adventures  by  sea;  of  fights  with 
the  Spaniards  and  the  capture  of  booty;  of  landing 
on  foreign  shores  and  making  tracks  through  pathless 
virgin  forests;  of  Red  Indians  and  birds  of  gorgeous 
plumage,  and  of  fierce  Amazon  women.  Of  these 
things  were  the  stories  related  on  Salterton  beach  by 
the  sailors,  who  wore  their  hair  in  ringlets  and  in 
their  ears  gold  earrings  shaped  like  ships,  and  whose 
skin  had  been  so  scorched  and  withered  by  tropical 
suns  that  they  were  nearly  as  swarthy  as  the  Indians 
themselves. 

Like  all  boys  in  those  days,  Walter  longed  to  go  to 
sea,  and  Sir  Francis  Drake  was  his  hero.  But  his 
ambitions  were  as  numerous  as  his  talents,  and  it 
was  not  on  the  sea  that  he  began  his  career  but  at 
Oxford. 

He  was  entered  as  a  Commoner  at  Oriel  College, 
Oxford,  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  and  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  that  great  love  of  learning  which  in  his 
later  life,  during  long  years  of  imprisonment  in  the 
Tower,  was  to  be  his  solace  and  distraction. 

*His  natural  parts  being  strangely  advanced  by 


h^ 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

academical  learning  under  the  care  of  an  excellent 
tutor  he  became  the  ornament  of  the  juniors  and 
was  worthily  esteemed  a  proficient  in  oratory  and 
philosophy,'  says  Anthony  Wood  in  his  AtliencB 
Oxonienses.  As  he  was  son  of  a  poor  country  squire 
and  one  of  numerous  brothers,  Raleigh  was  far  from 
affluent  in  his  college  days.  Another  gossip,  Aubrey, 
relates  a  story  *that  in  his  youth  he  was  under  straits 
for  want  of  money.  Mr.  Child,  of  Worcestershire, 
told  me  that  Sir  Walter  borrowed  a  gown  of  him 
when  he  was  at  Oxford  (they  were  of  the  same 
college)  which  he  never  restored,  nor  money  for  it.' 

It  is  interesting  to  know  that  it  was  at  Oxford 
that  Raleigh  first  became  acquainted  with  Philip 
Sidney,  the  mirror  of  all  chivalry,  who  afterward, 
like  himself,  was  to  be  a  favourite  of  the  Queen  and 
a  shining  light  of  the  court. 

He  was  still  only  a  boy  of  seventeen  when  he  left 
Oxford  without  taking  a  degree  and  went  to  the 
religious  wars  in  France.  He  joined  the  forces 
of  the  Huguenots,  and  received  his  baptism  of  fire 
at  the  battle  of  Jarnac  (which  he  mentions  in  his 
great  History  of  the  World),  where  Conde  was  slain. 
Very  little  is  known  of  Raleigh's  French  Campaign 
except  that  it  must  have  lasted  five  or  six  years, 
a  period  long  enough  in  which  to  acquire  the  art  of 
warfare,  and  to  become  callous  to  its  horrors  and 
bloodshed.  What  scenes  of  pillage  and  violence 
this  boy-soldier  must  have  seen  during  his  sojourn 
in  the  Huguenot  camp,  and  probably  he  was  not 
behindhand  in  exploits  of  personal  valour  and 
daring,  but  in  those  days  there  were  no  dispatches 
to  report  the  doings  of  the  obscure  younger  son  of 

10 


Boyhood 

a  Devonshire  country  gentleman  at  the  seat  of  war. 
We  can  only  surmise  that  his  military  training  in 
France  was  of  the  soundest,  and  made  a  man  of  him. 
He  came  back  to  England,  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
three,  in  1575,  and  entered  as  a  student  of  the  Middle 
Temple.  He  did  not,  however,  read  law,  but  be- 
came a  gay  youth,  hanging  about  the  court,  for 
perhaps  he  was  already  ambitious  of  being  a  con- 
spicuous figure  in  it.  On  one  occasion,  after  a  brawl 
with  his  boon-companions,  he  found  himself  lodged 
for  a  week  in  the  Fleet  prison,  and  it  is  thought  that 
at  this  time  he  may  have  been  attached  to  the  house- 
hold of  the  then  prime  favourite  of  the  Queen,  the 
Earl  of  Leicester,  as  were  so  many  young  men  who 
hoped  to  gain  a  footing  at  court. 

Yet  nothing  is  definitely  known  about  this,  and 
Raleigh  only  steps  out  in  clear  rehef  from  the 
shadowy  mists  of  the  past  when  he  starts  on  his 
first  naval  expedition  under  the  command  of  his 
half-brother,  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert. 


n 


CHAPTER  II:  At  Sea,  and 
in  Ireland 

FORTUNE  did  not  favour  the  first  sea-faring 
adventure  in  which  Raleigh  was  concerned, 
though  its  commander,  Gilbert,  had  a  high 
reputation  both  by  land  and  sea.  It  was  the  first 
crude  idea  of  laying  the  foundations  of  an  Empire 
beyond  the  ocean,  for  this  time  it  was  not  a 
question  of  plunder  only,  but  lands  were  to  be 
seized  in  the  Queen's  name — lands  on  which  it 
was  designed  to  plant  colonies. 

Gilbert's  patent  authorized  him  to  take  possession 
*of  any  barbarous  and  heathen  lands  not  possessed 
by  any  Christian  prince  or  people,'  and  the  country 
he  had  in  view  was  *that  Northern  part  of  America 
inhabited  by  a  savage  people  of  mild  and  tractable 
disposition,  and  of  all  other  unfrequented  places  the 
one  most  fitted  and  most  commodious  for  us  to  inter- 
meddle withal.'  Gilbert,  together  with  his  cousin.  Sir 
Richard  Grenville,  and  others,  petitioned  her  Majesty 
*To  allow  of  an  enterprise  by  them  conceived;  and 
with  the  help  of  God  under  the  protection  of  her 
Majesty's  most  princely  name  and  goodness,  at  their 
own  charge  and  adventure,  to  be  performed  for  dis- 
covery of  sundry  rich  and  unknown  lands,  fatally 
and  it  seemeth  by  God's  providence  reserved  for 
England  and  for  the  honour  of   her  Majesty.' 

In  September,  1578,  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  had 
gathered  together  in  Dartmouth  harbour  eleven 
vessels  'furnished  with  five  hundred  choice  soldiers 
and  sailors.'  Of  one  of  these  vessels  *The  Falcon,' 
Raleigh  was  captain.     Contrary  winds  delayed  the 


At  Sea  and  in  Ireland 

sailing  of  the  expedition  for  a  few  days,  and  in  the 
Bay  of  Biscay,  Knollys,  a  relation  of  the  Queen's, 
who  was  a  member  of  the  party,  quarrelled  with 
Gilbert  and  deserted  with  all  his  crew.  The  next 
misfortune  was  the  loss  of  a  ship  in  a  brush  with 
the  Spaniards,  when  Raleigh  narrowly  escaped  being 
killed.  After  this  all  the  ships  were  driven  by  'foul 
seas '  back  to  Plymouth,  and  thus  the  affair  ended  and 
the  first  dreams  of  founding  a  colony  melted  away. 

Nothing  more  is  heard  of  Raleigh  till  the  summer 
of  1580,  when  he  received  a  commission  as  a  Captain 
of  the  Queen,  to  raise  a  hundred  foot  soldiers  to  fight 
against  the  Irish  rebel,  Desmond,  in  the  civil  wars  in 
Ireland.  He  landed  at  Cork  after  a  stormy  voyage, 
not  very  pleased  with  the  business  before  him,  as  his 
pay  was  only  four  shillings  a  day  without  'food  and 
raiment.' 

He  determined  from  the  first  to  show  the  Irish  no 
mercy,  and  his  brutality  toward  them  belongs  to 
the  darkest  chapter  of  Raleigh's  history.  In  those 
days  the  Irish  were  in  a  perpetual  state  of  rebellion 
against  their  English  conquerors,  who  had  planted 
themselves  among  them,  taking  possession  of  their 
fertile  lands  and  trying  to  force  on  them  at  the  point 
of  the  sword  the  Protestant  religion. 

Lord  Grey,  under  whom  Raleigh  served  in  Ireland, 
ruled  with  an  iron  hand,  though  his  secretary, 
the  poet,  Edmund  Spenser,  author  of  the  Faerie 
Queene,  described  him  as  'gentle,  affable,  loving 
and  temperate.'  Under  this  Lord  Deputy's  regime 
in  the  unhappy  country,  according  to  his  own 
account  no  less  than  '1485  chief  men  and  gentle- 
men were  slain,  not  accounting  those  of  meaner 

13 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

sort,  nor  yet  executions  by  law  and  killing  of 
ehurles,  which  were  innumerable.' 

Among  the  'chief  men  and  gentlemen'  were  the 
brave  and  noble  Desmonds,  Fitzgeralds,  and  Gerald- 
ines,  whose  only  crime  was  a  passionate  love  of  their 
own  fair  green  island,  and  attachment  to  their  relig- 
ion which  had  been  the  faith  of  their  fathers  ever 
since  the  good  St  Patrick  had  landed  on  Irish  shores. 

Lord  Grey,  an  upright,  high-principled  gentleman 
in  private  life,  was  a  bigoted  Puritan,  and  when  the 
Queen  sent  him  to  govern  the  Irish  he  was  so  blinded 
by  religious  prejudice  that  no  treatment  seemed  to 
him  too  harsh  and  cruel  for  the  unfortunate  rebels. 
No  wonder  then  that  the  Lord  Deputy  and  his 
underlings  talked  of  them  as  'these  Irish  rogues  .  .  . 
worse  than  dogs,'  and  declared  that  there  was  no 
way  'to  daunt  these  people  but  by  the  edge  of  the 
sword  and  to  plant  better  in  their  place,  or  rather 
to  let  them  cut  each  other's  throats.' 

Just  at  the  time  that  Raleigh  arrived  in  Ireland, 
there  were  high  hopes  among  the  Irish  rebels  of 
throwing  off  the  detested  yoke,  because  the  Pope  and 
King  Philip  of  Spain  had  sent  over  Italian  and 
Spanish  soldiers  to  help  them.  They  had  established 
a  garrison  in  a  fortress  at  Smerwick,  while  another 
detachment  took  up  a  position  in  Fort  Del  Ore,  and 
it  was  an  hour  of  grave  anxiety  for  Lord  Grey,  as  Des- 
mond with  a  large  army  was  marching  to  their  relief. 

It  was  against  this  band  of  combined  foreign  and 
native  forces  that  Raleigh's  regiment  was  to  be 
engaged.  His  first  public  act  in  the  distressful 
country  was  to  take  part  in  the  trial  of  Sir  James 
Fitzgerald,  brother  of  the  rebel  leader,  the  Earl  of 

14 


At  Sea  and  in  Ireland 

Desmond.  No  mercy  was  shown  the  unfortunate 
Fitzgerald  and  he  was  condemned  to  the  horrible 
death  of  being  drawn  and  quartered.  A  little  later 
Raleigh  distinguished  himself  in  the  field  by  taking 
prisoner  or  slaughtering  a  whole  detachment  of 
the  enemy.  It  is  related  that  among  the  prisoners 
a  man  was  taken  covered  with  bundles  of  withies. 
When  Raleigh  asked  him  what  he  had  intended 
doing  with  these,  he  replied  that  he  would  have  used 
them  as  halters  for  the  'Enghsh  Churles,"  where- 
upon Raleigh  said  that  the  withies  should  now 
serve  to  hang  an  'Irish  Kern, '  and  at  once  suited 
the  action  to  the  word. 

Such  incidents  were  a  fitting  prelude  to  the  bloody 
massacre  of  Fort  Del  Ore,  which  took  place  under 
the  personal  generalship  of  Earl  Grey,  and  was  thus 
described  in  his  own  words  in  a  dispatch  to  the 
Queen:  'I  sent  certain  gentlemen  in  to  see  their 
weapons  and  armour  laid  down'  (the  garrison  had 
surrendered  after  a  parley)  'and  to  guard  the 
munitions  and  victual  there  left  for  spoil.  Then  put 
I  in  certain  bands  who  straight  fell  to  execution. 
There  were  six  hundred  slain,  four  hundred  were  as 
gallant  and  goodly  personages  as  of  any  I  ever 
beheld.  So  hath  it  pleased  the  Lord  of  hosts  to 
deliver  your  enemies  into  your  Highness'  hand.' 
And  in  this  infamous  butchery  of  defenceless  men 
who  had  laid  down  their  arms  on  the  understanding 
that  their  lives  would  be  spared,  Raleigh,  to  his 
shame,  played  an  active  part. 

'Captain  Raleigh,'  says  the  chronicler,  'together 
with  Captain  Mackworth  entered  into  the  Castle 
and  made  a  great  slaughter.' 

15 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

The  Queen  was  not  pleased  with  the  massacre  and 
the  course  of  events  in  Ireland,  and  Lord  Grey 
was  eventually  recalled,  through  the  influence  of 
Leicester,  his  enem}^  at  court. 

Raleigh  remained  in  Ireland  for  thirteen  months 
longer,  his  sword  never  idle,  for  the  insurrection  still 
smouldered  on.  During  the  winter  of  1580  he  was 
quartered  at  Cork.  He  rode  from  there  one  day  to 
Dublin  to  prevail  upon  Lord  Grey  to  let  him  capture 
and  carry  off  'Lord  Barry  of  Barrymore,'  whose  loy- 
alty was  under  suspicion.  He  obtained  leave,  but 
the  country  was  swarming  with  spies,  and  Barry  was 
informed  of  Raleigh's  plan,  and,  to  anticipate  it, 
burnt  his  own  castle  and  laid  waste  his  estates. 
Then  Fitz-Edmond,  an  adherent  of  Desmond's  lay 
in  ambush  at  the.  ford  between  Youghal  and  Cork, 
which  Captain  Raleigh  had  to  cross  on  his  way  home. 

With  only  six  men  as  his  escort,  Raleigh  found 
himself  in  a  tight  corner  and  confronted  suddenly  by 
a  comparatively  large  force  of  cavalry  and  foot 
soldiers.  Almost  single-handed  he  cut  his  way 
through  with  a  young  Devonshire  companion,  whose 
life  he  twice  saved,  as  his  horse  foundered  in  deep 
water  crossing  the  river,  while  Raleigh,  on  the  oppo- 
site bank,  stood  at  bay  with  a  pistol  in  one  hand  and 
a  quarter  staff  in  the  other  till  the  rest  of  his  escort 
had  crossed  too. 

Another  daring  feat  was  bearding  Lord  Roche  in 
his  own  castle  and  carrying  him  off  a  prisoner  to 
Cork  through  a  country  that  bristled  with  rebels. 
On  the  way  he  evaded  another  ambush  of  eight 
hundred  men  under  Fitz-Edmond,  with  consum- 
mate strategy,  and  had  many  other  hair-breadth 

16 


At  Sea  and  in  Ireland 

escapes.  He  was  not  at  all  modest  about  these 
brilliant  performances,  and  never  tired  of  bringing 
them  to  the  notice  of  his  superiors  and  claiming 
recognition  of  his  services.  He  complained  of  his 
position,  and  wanted  more  forces  to  stamp  out  the 
rebellion.  To  neither  of  his  leaders  Lord  Grey,  nor 
Ormonde,  the  military  governor  of  Munster,  with 
whom  he  was  brought  into  closer  contact,  was 
Raleigh  loyal.  He  criticized  them  both  in  his  letters 
and  blamed  them  for  the  dragging  on  of  the  war. 

'Considering  that  this  man,'  he  wrote  of  Ormonde, 
*has  now  been  Lord  General  of  Munster  about  two 
years,  there  are  at  this  instant  a  thousand  traitors 
more  than  there  were  the  first  day.  Would  God 
the  service  of  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  might  be  rightly 
valued,  who  with  a  third  part  of  the  garrison  now  in 
Ireland,  ended  a  rebellion  not  much  inferior  to  this 
in  three  months.' 

By  the  end  of  1581  the  rebellion  in  Munster  had 
been  at  last  crushed.  John  of  Desmond  was  hanged 
at  Cork  and  his  head  sent  to  be  displayed  in 
London,  the  Earl,  his  brother,  a  fugitive,  was 
hunted  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other, 
and  the  poor  *  Kerns,'  as  the  common  Irish  were 
called,  cowed  and  terrified,  showed  no  more  fight 
for  twenty  years  to  come.  The  English  garrisons 
were  reduced,  and  Raleigh's  Irish  enterprise  ended. 
Briefly  as  it  has  been  outlined  here,  one  would 
rather  have  dropped  a  veil  over  it  altogether,  if  it 
had  been  permissible  to  do  so,  for  in  spite  of  the  dis- 
tinguished deeds  of  bravery  that  marked  it,  the 
episode  belongs,  as  has  been  said  before,  to  the  least 
creditable  of  our  hero's  long  career. 

17 


CHAPTER  III:  Favourite  of 
the  Queen 

RALEIGH  left  the  wild  and  blood-stained 
Sister  Isle  and  carried  with  him  dispatches 
to  lay  before  his  Queen  in  Her  Majesty's 
Council  Chamber.  Here  she  listened  with  keen 
interest  to  the  debates  between  him  and  his  former 
chief,  Lord  Grey,  on  the  recent  unhappy  events  in 
Ireland,  and  took  special  notice  of  his  suggestions 
for  its  future  management. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  young  Captain's 
sharp  retorts  and  rapier-thrusts  in  argument  with 
Grey  appealed  to  the  Queen,  and  took  her  fancy 
as  much  as  his  strikingly  handsome  appearance. 

At  this  time  Raleigh  was  in  the  prime  of  his  man- 
hood. He  was  thirty  years  old,  six  feet  in  height, 
with  an  imposing  and  magnificent  bearing.  His 
short  beard  curled  up  at  the  end  and  matched  the 
brown  of  his  bold  eyes.  He  spoke  with  a  broad 
Devonshire  accent,  which  added  to  the  fascination 
of  his  fluent,  persuasive  speech. 

His  one  'naeve'  (fault),  says  old  Aubrey  in  his 
vivid  portraits  of  great  men,  'was  that  he  was 
damnably  proud.'  It  may  have  been  this  swaggering 
pride  which  made  him  countless  enemies,  for  Raleigh 
took  no  pains  to  become  popular  among  his  rival 
courtiers  except  when  it  served  his  purpose.  Heart- 
ily as  he  was  hated  he  was  sometimes  fawned  upon. 

*John  Long  being  one  time  in  the  Privy  Garden 
with  his  master,  saw  the  Earl  of  Nottingham  wipe  the 
dust  from  Sir  W.  Raleigh's  shoes  in  compliment.'^ 

^  Lives  of  Eminent  Men,  by  John  Aubrey. 
18 


Favourite  of  the  Queen 

But  this  humble  act  was  probably  meant  as  a  com- 
pliment to  the  value  of  the  shoes  rather  than  to 
Raleigh  himself,  as  he  often  carried  gems  worth 
hundreds  of  pounds  on  his  feet.  Even  at  Elizabeth's 
gorgeous  court  no  one  rivalled  him  in  splendour 
of  costume. 

He  wore  white  satin  doublets  embroidered  with 
*rich  pearles  and  a  mighty  rich  chain  of  great 
pearles  about  his  neck.'  Every  child  knows  and 
loves  the  pretty  story  of  his  casting  his  new  cloak  of 
plush  and  ermine  across  the  muddy  street  so  that  his 
Queen  should  not  wet  her  dainty  feet  by  stepping 
in  a  puddle.  There  is  no  reason  why  the  story  should 
not  be  true,  though  it  comes  down  to  us  on  the 
authority  of  only  one  chronicler,  gossiping  Bishop 
Fuller.  2  Such  an  act  of  spontaneous  chivalry  would 
come  naturally  to  Raleigh,  who  had  not  associated  for 
six  years  with  French  gallants  without  acquiring  some 
of  their  graces  and  elegance.  The  custom  of  spread- 
ing the  cloak  was  not  unusual  abroad,  especially 
among  the  Spaniards  who,  in  spite  of  their  cruelty 
and  bigotry,  excelled  among  nations  in  courtesy. 

Quite  as  likely  is  the  other  story  that  has  been  dis- 
credited as  legendary,  the  story  of  Raleigh  scratching 
on  a  window-pane  at  Greenwich  where  he  knew  the 
Queen  would  come  by  and  see  the  words: 

'Fain  would  I  climb  but  that  I  fear  to  fall.' 

-  Her  Majesty,  taking  the  air  in  a  walk,  stopped  at  a  plashy  place, 
in  doubt  whether  to  go  on,  when  Raleigh,  dressed  in  a  gay  and  genteel 
habit  of  those  times,  immediately  cast  off  and  spread  his  new  plush 
cloak  on  the  ground;  on  which  her  Majesty,  gently  treading,  was 
conducted  over  clean  and  dry. — Fuller  s  Lives. 

19 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

To  which  she  responded: 

*If  thy  heart  fall  thee  do  not  climb  at  all.' 

Certain  it  is  that  Raleigh's  heart  did  not  fail  him 
and  that,  with  the  encouragement  of  his  royal  mis- 
tress, he  swung  himself  fearlessly  upwards  and  soared 
from  one  success  to  another  till  he  reached  the  high- 
est pinnacle  of  fame. 

The  first  substantial  favour  he  enjoyed  was  a 
grant  of  £100  for  his  services  in  Ireland  and  an 
appointment  to  a  command  there,  which  he  was  of 
course  excused  from  attending  in  person,  for  his 
presence  at  court  was  essential  to  his  role  as  new 
favourite.  The  old  favourites,  Dudley,  Earl  of 
Leicester  ('Sweet  Robin'),  Sir  Thomas  Heneage, 
and  Sir  Christopher  Hatton  ('Bel-wether'),  who 
danced  so  beautifully  that  he  was  called  the  dancing 
Chancellor,  pretended  to  be  greatly  chagrined  by 
their  noses  being  put  out  of  joint  by  this  upstart, 
'Water.' 

Queen  Elizabeth's  long-drawn-out  flirtation  with 
the  hideous  Duke  of  Angou  (whom,  strange  to  say,  she 
had  been  nearer  wedding  than  any  of  her  good-look- 
ing suitors)  had  just  come  to  an  end.  Leicester's 
secret  marriage,  when  the  news  of  it  had  leaked  out 
a  year  before,  had  been  counted  a  deadly  crime, 
and  the  Earl  no  longer  basked  in  the  sunshine  of  her 
regal  smiles.  But  with  the  unmarried  Hatton  the 
Queen  still  coquetted  and  played  off  ridiculous 
airs.  She  tried  to  pacify  her  'belwether's'  jealousy 
of  Raleigh  by  assurances  that  she  would  suffer  no 
element  (meaning  'Water')  to  so  abound  as  to  breed 
confusion.'     And  on  one  occasion,   when  Raleigh 

20 


UALKKiU      TASTIXG     HIS     NE\Y     CLOAK     OF 
ERMINE    ACROSS    THE    MUDDY    STREET" 


rLUSII     AND 
-Pane   19 


Favourite  of  the  Queen 

took  possession  of  Hatton's  lodgings  at  Croydon, 
the  Queen  flew  into  a  rage  and  used  *  bitterness  of 
speech  against  "Water"  saying  that  she  would 
rather  see  him  hanged  than  equal  him  with  Hatton 
or  that  the  world  should  think  she  did  so.' 

When  Angou  left  England  and  sailed  for  Flushing, 
where  he  was  to  receive  the  fealty  of  the  Nether- 
lands, he  was  escorted  to  his  new  dominions  by 
Leicester,  Sidney  and  Raleigh  among  others.  On 
taking  leave  of  William  the  Silent,  Raleigh  was 
again  entrusted  with  dispatches,  which  he  carried  to 
the  Queen  with  the  message:  ^uh  umbra  alarum 
tuerum  protegimur. 

But  with  the  exception  of  such  an  occasional 
absence  as  this,  Raleigh  spent  the  years  preceding 
the  great  national  triumph  of  defeating  the  Armada 
mainly  in  dancing  attendance  on  his  sovereign. 
His  star  continued  in  the  ascendant.  Riches  and 
honours  were  heaped  on  him.  He  was  created 
Captain  of  the  Guard,  and  given  as  his  town  resi- 
dence Durham  House  in  the  Strand,  one  of  those 
noble  palaces  with  gardens  running  down  to  the 
river,  which  made  Elizabethan  London  so  fair  a  city. 
*I  well  remember  his  study,'  says  Aubrey,  *  which 
was  on  a  little  turret  that  looked  into  and  over  the 
Thames  and  had  the  prospect  which  is  perhaps  as 
pleasant  as  any  in  the  world.'  He  kept  a  retinue 
of  forty  persons  and  as  many  horses,  and  entertained 
on  a  magnificent  scale  all  sorts  and  conditions  of 
men.  His  wealth  was  derived  from  leases  of  prop- 
erty belonging  to  All  Souls  College,  Oxford,  from 
patents  to  license  vintners,  and  many  other  emolu- 
ments which  the  Queen  lavished  on  him. 

21 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

In  Ireland  he  got  the  lion's  share  of  the  confiscated 
Desmond  estates  when  they  were  divided  up  and 
scrambled  for.  The  country  had  been  so  devastated 
by  the  sword  during  the  late  civil  war  that  it  was 
possible  to  travel  from  one  end  of  Munster  to  the 
other  *  without  meeting  man,  woman  or  child  save 
in  the  towns.'  Raleigh  was  given  the  third  of  seign- 
ories  in  Cork,  Waterford  and  Tipperary,  amount- 
ing to  12,000  acres  each,  of  fertile  wooded  land. 
He  rented  Lismore  Castle  at  a  nominal  rate,  and  had, 
as  well,  a  fine  manor  house  on  the  coast  at  Youghal. 
To  do  him  justice  he  made  every  effort  to  cultivate 
and  render  productive  the  soil  which  so  recently  he 
had  helped  to  drench  with  blood.  He  induced 
young  farmers  and  yeoman  to  come  over  from 
Devon  and  Cornwall  and  introduce  agricultural 
improvements  into  the  isle  of  sighs  and  tears,  w^here 
later  he  planted  the  first  potatoes  in  his  garden  at 
Youghal.  The  Devonians  were  told  that  there  were 
pearls  and  even  diamonds  to  be  found  in  Ireland 
that  rivalled  those  of  the  Indes,  and  so  the  sons  of 
squires  and  farmers  between  the  Axe  and  Exe,  and 
Dart  and  Tavy  found  their  way  across  the  Irish 
Channel. 

Raleigh  pictured  the  scenes  of  desolation  trans- 
formed into  acres  of  waving  corn  and  rye,  with 
hundreds  of  smiling  homesteads  and  farms,  like  those 
of  his  dear  native  county  of  Devon.  A  flourishing 
colony  was  to  arise  like  a  Phoenix  from  the  ashes,  but 
somehow  it  did  not,  and  Raleigh's  vast  Irish  estates 
caused  him  more  vexation  and  disappointment  than 
they  ever  brought  him  satisfaction  and  pleasure. 

22 


CHAPTER  IV:  Lord  Warden 
of  the  Stannaries 

IN  1585  Raleigh  was  made  Lord  Warden  of  the 
Stannaries,  an  important  position,  in  which  he 
was  much  more  successful  than  as  a  landlord 
in  Ireland. 

The  Stannaries  Parliament  of  Devon  and  Cornish 
miners  was  held  in  the  open  air  on  Dartmoor's  purple 
heather,  at  the  spot  where  the  massive  pile  of  Crockern 
Tor  rises  suddenly  against  the  sky.  In  this  solitary 
silence,  which,  as  a  rule,  the  very  curlews  seemed  shy  of 
breaking,  the  hardy  stannators  of  the  moorlands  had 
gathered  from  Saxon  times  at  the  summons  of  their 
Warden  to  hold  their  conventions.  Roughly  hewn  in 
the  gKey  rock  of  the  Tor  were  the  Warden's  chair,  the 
seals  for  the  jurors,  the  corner  stone  of  the  court  crier, 
and  a  table  on  which  to  place  parchments  and  a  bottle 
of  wine  for  the  refreshment  of  the  orators. 

Burgesses  from  Tavistock  and  Ashburton,  and 
other  towns  in  the  west,  crowds  of  rough  and  un- 
kempt tinners  from  the  mines,  mustered  in  great  force 
to  this  curious  meeting,  especially  when  the  great 
granite  seat  in  the  open  air  was  occupied  by  the  versa- 
tile knight,  the  accomplished  scholar  and  soldier  and 
well-beloved  of  his  Queen,  Walter  Raleigh.  His 
personality  had  a  wonderful  charm  for  the  West 
Country  folk,  who  were  proud  to  claim  him  as  their 
own,  and  with  whom  he  was  as  popular  as  he  was  the 
reverse  among  his  gay  fellow-courtiers  at  Whitehall. 

Here,  breathing  his  mild  native  air,  he  was  in  his 
element,  administering  the  laws  that  he  drew  up  for 
the  tinners,  setthng  their  suits  and  redressing  their 

23 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

grievances.  One  can  picture  him,  sceptre  in  hand, 
assuming  an  air  of  almost  solemn  dignity  as  he  threw 
himself  heart  and  soul  into  the  business,  the  splen- 
dour of  his  dazzling  apparel  hidden  for  the  time 
being  beneath  his  robe  of  office,  which  resembled  the 
garb  of  the  ancient  Druids. 

And  then  w^hen  the  people  dispersed  in  all  direc- 
tions, streaming  to  their  homes  over  the  purple  moor, 
Raleigh  would  probably  ride  round,visiting  old  haunts 
and  friends;  he  would  see  himself  a  boy  again  at  every 
turn;  here  was  the  stream  in  which  he  had  fished  with 
his  gallant  half-brothers  for  trout,  bubbling  down  one 
of  the  ferny  green  combes;  here  the  cabin  of  some  old 
fisherman  perched  like  an  eagle's  nest  on  the  red  cliff s, 
where  he  had  been  shown  nuggets  of  gold  and  lumps  of 
coral,  and  heard  tales  of  adventure  and  of  'Frankie' 
Drake,  which  had  first  awakened  his  boyish  dreams  of 
sailing  the  seas  in  search  of  new  worlds. 

Those  dreams  were  never  relinquished  even  when 
he  had  donned  the  silver  armour  of  the  Captain  of  the 
Guard  and  was  bound  hand  and  foot  by  his  silken 
chains  to  the  old  world.  In  his  palatial  study  at 
Durham  House  overlooking  the  Thames,  he  often 
spent  the  hours  of  night  when  he  was  released  from 
his  duties  at  court,  with  charts  spread  out  before 
him,  tracing,  by  the  help  of  a  Hariot  or  a  Richard 
Hakluyt,  those  voyages  for  which  he  supplied  the 
funds  and  fitted  out  ships  for  others  to  sail  in,  while 
he,  at  the  behest  of  his  Queen,  had  to  stay  at  home. 

It  must  have  been  before  his  visits  to  Devon, 
to  carry  out  his  duties  as  Warden  of  the  Stannaries, 
that  Raleigh,  the  true  Devonian,  having  neared  the 
apex  of  his  fortunes,  was  fired  with  Ihe  desire  to  buy 

24 


.c^mi>*«f7' 


'RALEKiii    rRESir>iN(i    (.vi:i:    r;ii:    srAXXAiiiES    tarlia- 

MENT  OF  DEVON  AND  CORNWALL"  — /''///<•  2^ 


Lord  W^arden  of  the  Stannaries 

back  his  modest  birthplace,  Hayes  Farm,  which  had 
passed  into  other  hands.  Aubrey  gives  the  follow- 
ing letter  sent  to  *  Mr  Duke  in  Devon,  writt  with  his 
own  hand': 

Mr  Duke, 

I  wrote  to  Mr  Prideaux  to  move  you  for  the 
purchase  of  Hayes  a  farme  sometimes  in  my  father's 
possession.  I  will  most  willingly  give  whatsoever 
in  your  conscience  you  shall  deem  it  worth,  and  if 
at  any  time  you  shall  have  occasion  to  use  me,  you 
shall  find  me  a  thankful  friend  to  you  and  yours. 
I  am  resolved  if  I  cannot  entreat  you,  to  build  at 
Colliton;  but  for  the  natural  disposition  I  have  to 
that  place  being  borne  in  that  house  I  had  rather 
seat  myself  there  than  anywhere  else;  I  take  my 
leave  readie  to  countervaile  all  your  courtesies 
to  the  utter  of  my  power.  You  very  willing  friend. 
In  all  I  shall  be  able,  Walter  Raleigh 

Court,  ye  xxvi.  of  July  1584. 

The  said  Mr  Duke  cherished  this  letter  for  posterity 
in  some  old  carved  oak  bureau,  with  other  papers, 
but  remained  'unmoved'  by  Sir  Walter's  request  to 
sell  him  Hayes  Farm.  That  he  should  have  coveted 
it  so  much,  is  proof  of  his  love  of  Devon  and  its 
associations.  If  Raleigh  had  to  be  content  with 
his  portion  as  a  younger  son  of  Collaton-Raleigh, 
in  Devonshire,  in  five  other  counties  he  came  in  for 
vast  acres,  on  the  execution  of  Anthony  Babington, 
for  high  treason.  The  wealthy  young  Jesuit  had 
been  implicated  in  a  plot  to  murder  Elizabeth  and 
put  the  Queen  of  Scots  on  the  throne.     This  plot  was 

25 


Sir  Tf^alter  Raleigh 

unravelled  by  the  astute  Walsingham,  the  Queen's 
secretary,  who  played  for  the  purpose  a  double  game 
with  Spain,  in  which  duplicity  Raleigh  is  supposed  to 
have  had  some  hand.  Babington,  anyhow,  based 
all  his  hopes  of  a  pardon  on  getting  Raleigh  to 
intercede  for  his  life,  offering  him  £1000  through  a 
cousin,  an  insignificant  sum  indeed  compared  with 
the  great  accession  of  wealth  which  came  to  him  with 
Babington's  estates.  The  Queen  granted  Raleigh 
all  Babington's  goods  and  property,  except  one 
quaint  clock,  which  she  retained  for  herself.  This 
marked  the  high  tide  of  Raleigh's  fortunes.  Yet  at 
the  very  moment  when  he  had  the  ball  at  his  feet, 
a  cloud  arose  on  his  halcyon  sky  in  the  shape  of  a 
younger  rival,  a  youth  of  twenty,  gifted  with  a 
charm  of  manner  and  grace  of  person  which  proved 
of  even  more  deadly  fascinations  than  his  own  for 
the  virgin  Queen  of  over  fifty.  *  When  she  is  abroad, 
nobody  is  near  her,  but  my  Lord  of  Essex;  and  at 
night  my  Lord  is  at  cards,  or  one  game  or  another 
with  her  till  the  birds  sing  in  the  morning.' 

Robert  Devereux,  Earl  of  Essex,  was  stepson  of 
the  Queen's  earlier  favourite,  Leicester,  whose  secret 
marriage  with  the  boy's  mother.  Lady  Essex,  had 
incurred  his  royal  mistress's  dire  displeasure.  High- 
spirited,  head-strong  and  insolent,  the  young  gallant 
was  not  disposed  to  tolerate  cheerfully  the  rivalry  of 
the  man  whom  he  dubbed  that  *  Knave  Raleigh.' 

The  Queen  told  Essex  that  there  was  'no  such 
reason  why  he  should  disdain  him.' 

'This  speech,'  Essex  said,  'troubled  me  so  much 
that,  as  near  as  I  could,  I  did  describe  unto  her  what 
he  had  been  and  what  he  was.' 

26 


Lord  JVarden  of  the  Stannaries 

One  can  easily  understand  how  little  the  younger 
minion  was  able  to  appreciate  the  genius  of  the 
elder.  What  did  Essex  know  or  care  about  the  great 
schemes  of  Empire-building  which  busied  the  brain 
behind  that  dome-like  forehead?  or  of  the  big  soul 
hampered  in  its  'flights  of  *'poesie"  by  the  silver 
breast-plate  of  the  Captain  of  the  Guard.' 

To  him  Raleigh  was,  as  to  others  of  his  fellow- 
courtiers,  merely  the  upstart  'Water,'  and  the 
new-comer  made  it  his  business  to  try  and  oust  him 
from  favour,  finding  in  his  dislike  of  Raleigh  an  in- 
centive for  his  flirtation  with  the  Queen,  a  flirtation 
which  otherwise  would  have  been  distasteful  to  him ; 
for  at  the  age  of  ten  this  pretty  boy  had  declined 
most  emphatically  to  be  kissed  by  Elizabeth. 

Yet  Essex  was  not  a  rival  to  be  despised.  He  too 
had  gifts  of  mind  as  well  as  beauty  of  person,  and 
might  have  attained  to  greatness  had  he  been  less 
impetuous  and  violent.  Full  of  fiery  spirits  and 
dash,  there  was  another  side  to  his  character,  as  his 
friendship  with  the  great  scholar  and  astute  lawyer, 
Lord  Bacon,  testifies. 

A  modern  historian  has  said  that  Essex  'must  have 
seemed  in  the  eyes  of  Bacon  like  the  hope  of  the 
world.' 

Elizabeth  made  him  Master  of  the  Horse,  and  in 
this  capacity  friction  with  Raleigh  was  inevitable. 
We  shall  find  that  up  to  the  time  of  Essex's  tragic 
end,  the  life-paths  of  these  two  heroes  of  ten  cross  each 
other.  But  now  we  will  turn  for  a  time  from  Ral- 
eigh as  a  courtier  to  follow  his  doings  as  the  founder 
of  that  flourishing  Empire  beyond  the  ocean,  of  which 
to-day  every  Englishman  has  reason  to  be  proud. 

27 


CHAPTER  V:  Newfoundland 
and  Virginia 

WE  have  seen  that  Raleigh's  attempt,  in 
conjunction  with  his  half-brother,  Sir 
Humphrey  Gilbert,  to  begin  an  English 
settlement  in  North  America  in  1578  had  failed. 
Gilbert,  nevertheless,  was  determined  to  try  again 
before  his  six  years'  patent  elapsed,  and  was  always 
on  the  look  out  for  an  opportunity.  The  opportunity 
came  with  Walter's  rise  at  court.  By  the  spring  of 
1583  a  fleet  had  been  got  together  and  was  ready  to 
sail  under  the  command  of  Gilbert.  Raleigh  spent 
£2000  in  building  and  equipping  one  of  the  ships 
called  the  'Bark-Raleigh,'  which  must  not  be  con- 
fused with  the  'Ark-Raleigh,'  an  altogether  different 
vessel  which  was  built  in  1557,  and  employed  against 
the  Armada. 

Raleigh  was  appointed  vice-admiral  of  the  ex- 
pedition, but  the  Queen  refused  to  let  him  go,  and  also 
tried  to  persuade  Gilbert  to  stay  at  home  '  as  a  man 
noted  for  no  good  hap  at  sea.'  His  brother's  inter- 
vention, however,  gained  the  Queen's  consent,  and 
she  ordered  Raleigh  to  send  Sir  Humphrey  a  token, 
which  he  did  with  the  following  letter: 

Brother, — I  have  sent  you  a  token  from  her 
Majestic,  an  anchor  guided  by  a  lady,  as  you  see,  and 
farther  Her  Highness  willed  me  to  send  you  word 
that  she  wished  you  as  great  good  hap  and  safety  to 
your  ship  as  if  herself  were  there  in  person,  desiring 
you  to  have  care  of  yourself  as  of  that  which  she 
tendereth;   .    .    . 

Further  she  commandeth  me  that  you  leave  your 

28 


Newfoundland  and  Virginia 

picture  with  me.  .  .  .  So  I  commit  you  to  the  will 
and  protection  of  God,  who  send  us  such  life  or  death 
as  He  shall  please,  or  hath  appointeth. — Your  true 
brother,  W.  Raleigh 

The  fleet  sailed  on  the  10th  of  July,  and  almost  at 
once  Raleigh's  great  ship  deserted  and  came  back 
to  Plymouth.  The  excuse  was  that  a  fever  had 
broken  out  on  board,  but  Sir  Humphrey  declined  to 
accept  this  excuse,  and  wrote  to  Peckham  com- 
plaining that  she  had  run  from  him  in  fair  clean 
weather,  and  prayed  that  his  brother  Raleigh  should 
make  the  crew  'an  example  to  all  knaves.' 

Sir  Humphrey  sailed  on  with  his  four  small  ships, 
and  took  possession  of  the  coast  of  Newfoundland 
in  the  Queen's  name.  According  to  a  curious  custom 
the  sod  was  cut  and  a  hazel  wand  given  to  the  per- 
former of  the  ceremony,  in  the  presence  of  the 
captains  of  thirty  or  forty  fishing  boats  of  all 
nationalities  lying  off  the  coast.  This  was  not  the 
part  of  the  country  the  expedition  had  first  intended 
to  colonize,  but  the  territory  was  nominally  di- 
vided among  its  members.  Soon,  however,  they 
became  rebellious  and  unmanageable,  and  plundered 
the  fishing  boats  when  Gilbert  was  on  shore.  Many 
were  invalided  home  on  the  'Swallow,'  others  died, 
and  a  move  was  made  in  a  more  southerly  direction, 
toward  the  place  where  it  had  been  originally 
designed  to  found  the  colony. 

Now  calamity  followed  calamity.  The  ships  were 
tossed  hither  and  thither  on  the  stormy  Atlantic. 
Misfortune  first  overtook  the  'Delight,'  which  was 
wrecked,  leaving  the  '  Golden  Hinde '  and  the  small 

29 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

cockle-shell  of  the  'Squirrel'  to  fight  the  seas  as 
best  they  could  alone.  The  poor  httle '  Squirrel'  was 
crammed  with  sick  and  fever-stricken  men,  who 
implored  their  commander  to  abandon  the  voyage 
and  set  sail  for  home.  The  weather  got  worse,  and 
terrifying  monsters  appeared  among  the  waves,  in 
the  imaginations  of  the  sick  men.  At  the  Azores 
it  was  plain  that  the  *  Squirrel'  could  not  survive 
much  longer,  yet  the  gallant  Gilbert  would  not 
forsake  the  little  craft  and  take  refuge  in  the  '  Golden 
Hinde,'  though  he  was  besought  most  earnestly  to 
leave  the  over-crowded  boat  to  its  fate.  From  the 
other  ship  he  was  seen  *  sitting  abaft  with  a  book  in 
his  hand,'  and  once  he  was  heard  to  call  out  cheerily, 
'Be  of  good  heart,  my  friends,  we  are  as  near  to 
Heaven  by  sea  as  by  land.'  Soon  after  the  'Squirrel' 
sank  and  was  seen  no  more  battling  against  the 
waves.  Thus  perished  the  brave  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert,  who  had  calmly  faced  death  on  the  ocean 
often  before,  and  preferred  death  to  going  back  once 
more  a  beaten  man  to  meet  the  scathing  reproach 
of  his  Queen  that  he  had  'no  good  hap  at  sea.' 

The  loss  of  his  distinguished  brother  was  a  great 
grief  to  Raleigh,  but  it  did  not  dishearten  him  or 
turn  him  from  the  purpose  on  which  his  whole  soul 
was  concentrated.  Sir  Humphrey  had  failed,  as 
Cabot,  Willoughby  and  Frobisher  had  failed  before 
him,  in  finding  a  north-west  passage  to  China,  and 
it  was  ordained  that  a  younger  Gilbert,  Adrian, 
should  succeed  his  brother,  with  Raleigh's  help,  in 
striving  to  accomplish  this  task.  But  Raleigh's 
ambition  extended  far  beyond  the  discovery  of  a 
north-west  passage.     He  would  never  be  content, 

30 


Newfoundland  and  Virginia 

he  said,  till  he  saw  an  English  nation  flourishing  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

The  charter  which  had  been  held  by  Sir  Humphrey 
was  renewed,  giving  to  Walter  Raleigh,  Esq.,  and  his 
heirs  *free  liberty  to  discover  barbarous  countries, 
not  actually  possessed  by  any  Christian  prince  and 
inhabited  by  Christian  people  to  occupy  and  enjoy 
the  same  for  ever.'  A  condition  was  made  that  the 
Crown  should  receive  a  fifth  part  of  all  the  gold  and 
silver  and  other  precious  metals  found.  Raleigh  and 
his  representatives  were  to  have  power  to  punish, 
pardon,  govern,  rule;  and  the  laws  were  to  be  'as  near 
as  may  be  agreeable  to  the  laws  of  England.' 
Expedition  after  expedition  was  sent  by  him  with 
the  object  of  annexing  and  colonizing  such  lands. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  Raleigh's  first 
thought  was  always  of  colonization  and  that  the 
acquiring  of  gold  and  riches  came  second.  The  evil 
of  the  Spanish  incursion  into  the  Indes,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  always  been  that  the  chief  object  of  the 
explorers  was  gold.  Terrible  cruelties  had  been  in- 
flicted by  the  Spaniards  on  the  native  Indians  to  find 
out  the  whereabouts  of  their  treasure.  This  sacking 
of  towns,  and  the  plunder  of  fabulous  hoards  of  gold 
and  gems,  had  excited  the  greed  of  the  whole  civil- 
ized world,  and  it  was  the  desire  for  gold  which  had 
first  drawn  the  English  mariners  to  the  West. 

It  is  to  Raleigh's  undying  honour,  therefore, 
that  he  established  a  higher  ideal.  Both  he  and  his 
brother  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  believed  that  gold  was 
only  a  means  to  serve  commercial  ends,  not  an  end 
in  itself.  They  enforced  the  principle  that  trade- 
colonization  and  the  extension  of  empire  were  all 

31 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

more  vital  to  the  interests  of  England  than  the  dis- 
covery of  mere  gold.  Even  Spain  had  found  out 
that  there  were  others  commodities  more  important 
than  gold  in  the  countries  it  discovered. 

*Ginger,  hides,  tobacco  and  other  merchandise,' 
wrote  the  author  of  a  treatise  published  in  Raleigh's 
day,  showing  how  his  enlightened  ideas  had  taken 
hold  of  the  more  intelligent  of  his  countrymen,  'it 
may  be  boldly  affirmed  yield  far  more  profit  to  the 
generality  of  the  Spanish  subjects  than  the  mines  do, 
or  have  done  this  last  age.  Who  gave  gold  and 
silver  the  monopoly  of  wealth,  or  made  them  the 
Almighty's  favourites.^  This  is  the  richest  land 
which  feeds  most  men.  What  remarkable  mines 
hath  France,  Belgium,  Lombardy  "^  Do  we  not  see 
that  the  silks,  calicoes,  drugs  and  spices  of  the  East 
swallow  up  all  the  mines  of  the  West  T 

Two  captains,  sent  out  by  Raleigh  to  reconnoitre 
the  country  on  which  he  had  set  his  heart,  returned 
in  1584  with  glowing  descriptions.  They  were  Philip 
Amadas  and  Arthur  Barlow,  accompanied  by  the 
pilot,  Simon  Fernandez. 

They  had  landed  and  taken  possession  in  the 
Queen's  name  of  a  country  on  a  coast  where  grapes 
grew  in  abundance  close  to  the  water's  edge,  where 
gigantic  cedars  spread  their  branches,  and  everything 
seemed  to  grow  in  rank  luxuriance.  The  natives 
were  peaceful  and  friendly,  and  they  brought  furs, 
pearls  and  other  precious  things  in  exchange  for  the 
white  men's  gifts.  'The  King's  brother,'  related  the 
captains,  *had  a  great  liking  for  our  armour,  a  sword 
and  divers  other  things  which  he  had,  and  offered  to 
lay  a  great  box  of  pearls  in  gage  for  them.     But 

32 


Newfoundland  and  Virginia 

we  refused  it  for  this  time,  because  we  would  not 
have  them  know  we  esteemed  thereof,  until  we  had 
understood  in  what  part  of  the  country  the  pearls 
grew.' 

*Surely  this  was  the  best  soil  under  heaven'  was 
their  verdict  when  their  eyes  had  rested  for  the  first 
time  on  this  rich  fertile  land  of  the  West,  and  they 
had  sailed  home  full  of  the  news  to  Raleigh,  whose 
plan  w^as  to  get  a  firm  foothold  for  the  Enghsh  on 
the  northern  continent  of  America,  which  should 
counterbalance  the  power  of  Spain  in  the  South. 

When  Raleigh  laid  the  information  which  the 
captains  had  brought  before  the  Queen,  she  herself 
christened  the  new  dominion  Virginia,  and  gave  him 
carte  blanche  to  set  about  colonizing  it  in  earnest. 

The  Spaniards  were  watching  him  with  jealous 
eyes.  They  had  spies  in  every  English  port.  King 
Philip  heard  from  one  that  'The  Queen  has  knighted 
Raleigh  her  favourite  and  has  given  him  a  ship  of 
her  own.  .  .  .  Raleigh  has  also  bought  two  Dutch 
fly  boats  of  120  tons  each  to  carry  stores,  and  two 
other  boats  of  40  tons,  in  addition  to  which  he  is 
having  built  four  pinnaces.  Altogether  Raleigh  will 
fit  out  no  fewer  than  sixteen  vessels  in  which  he 
intends  to  convey  400  men.  The  Queen  has  assured 
him  that  if  he  will  refrain  from  going  himself  she  will 
defray  all  the  expenses  of  the  preparations.' 

It  was  unfortunate  for  Raleigh  and  the  success 
of  the  colony  that  the  Queen's  infatuation  for  him 
prevented  his  going  in  person.  Instead,  Sir  Richard 
Grenville  was  given  command  of  the  expedition, 
and  he,  gallant  seamen  that  he  was,  gloried  in  fight- 
ing and  plundering,  and  had  none  of  Raleigh's  high 

33 


Sir  TVaher  Raleigh 

ideals  with  regard  to  the  building  up  of  a  peaceable 
empire  overseas. 

He  was  overbearing  and  tyrannical  to  the  men 
under  him,  and  converted  the  friendly,  wild  natives 
of  North  America  into  treacherous  enemies  by  his 
want  of  tact  and  consideration. 

After  houses  had  been  built  and  stores  landed,  Gren- 
ville  sailed  away,  leaving  the  budding  colony  under 
the  governorship  of  Ralph  Lane.  He  promised  to  re- 
turn before  Easter,  bringing  with  him  fresh  provisions. 

On  his  way  home  he  plundered  a  Spanish  ship, 
and  took  a  'fine  cabinet  of  pearls,'  among  other 
treasure  of  gold,  silver,  cochineal,  ivory  and  hides. 
It  was  said  the  Queen  claimed  all  the  pearls  for 
herself,  and  did  not  give  Raleigh,  to  whom,  of  course, 
the  captured  cargo  belonged  by  right,  'one  pearl.' 

Had  Raleigh  been  present  among  the  colonists, 
all  might  have  been  well.  He  would  have  infected 
them  with  his  own  enthusiasm,  and  exercised  a  dis- 
cipline which  would  have  checked  insubordination 
and  private  quarrels.  Things  had  looked  promising 
enough  to  start  with,  but  after  Grenville's  departure. 
Lane  found  himself  unable  to  cope  with  the  troubles 
that  arose  between  the  settlers,  and  between  the  set- 
tlers and  the  Indians,  who  were  no  longer  described,  as 
they  had  been  by  the  first  explorers,  as  'the  most  lov- 
ing, gentle  and  faithful,  void  of  all  guile  and  treason, 
and  such  as  live  after  the  manner  of  the  golden  age.' 

A  great  blow  was  the  death  of  the  King's  brother, 
who  had  been  particularly  well-disposed  toward  the 
Enghshmen.  The  King  himself,  on  the  other  hand, 
plotted  an  insurrection  against  them,  in  the  disguise 
of  a  chief,  and  was  put  to  death. 

34 


Newfoundland  and  Virginia 

The  colonists  ploughed,  sowed  and  planted,  and 
searched  for  mines,  but  when  Easter  came  and  no 
Grenville  reappearel,  they  became  disheartened. 
Their  supplies  were  running  out,  although  the  corn 
would  soon  be  ready  for  cutting.  One  day  in  June 
they  saw  a  fleet  approaching  the  coast.  It  was  not 
Grenville,  but  Drake,  who  had  been  struck  by  the 
happy  thought  of  calling  at  the  new  colony  on  his 
way  from  the  plunder  and  sack  of  Sante  Domingo. 
The  discouraged  settlers  were  seized  with  home- 
sickness at  the  sight  of  the  English  ships  and  their 
prosperous  admiral,  and,  in  spite  of  his  promise  of 
fresh  provisions,  they  prevailed  on  Drake  to  take 
them  on  board  straightaway  to  England;  thus  they 
turned  their  backs  on  their  savage  adopted  home, 
for   which   they   had  never  felt  any  real  affection. 

A  ship  fitted  out  by  Raleigh  was  already  on  its 
way  to  relieve  the  distressed  colonists.  It  arrived 
at  the  forsaken  settlement  soon  after  Drake  had 
sailed,  and  was  obliged  to  return,  after  searching 
for  the  colonists,  who  were  no  longer  there,  with 
its  stores  and  supplies  unused.  Grenville  soon 
followed  on  a  like  vain  quest,  but  before  starting 
again  for  England  he  left  a  handful  of  men  to 
continue  the  colony  on  the  island  of  Roanoak. 

It  was  in  July  1586  that  the  deserters  landed  at 
Plymouth  with  Drake's  fleet.  Hariot,  the  great 
mathematician  and  confidential  friend  of  Raleigh, 
had  made  many  researches  in  Virginia  and  discovered 
the  use  of  tobacco  and  potatoes,  so  that  it  was 
with  the  return  of  the  disappointed  colonists  that 
the  habit  of  smoking  became  fashionable  in  England. 
Raleigh  introduced   it   at   court   and   smoked   his 

35 


Sir  TFaher  Raleigh 

silver-bowled  pipe  in  the  Queen's  presence,  and  all 
the  Elizabethan  gallants  followed  his  example. 
But  Hariot  proclaimed  its  medicinal  properties,  and 
gave  a  delightfully  quaint  account  of  the  way  in 
which  the  Indians  cultivated  and  used  the  plant. 
*By  sucking  it  through  pipes  of  clay,'  he  said,  'they 
purged  all  gross  humours  from  the  head  and  stomach, 
opened  all  the  pores  and  passages  of  the  body,  pre- 
serving it  from  obstructions  or  breaking  them,  where- 
bye  they  noteably  preserved  their  health,  and  knew 
not  many  grevious  diseases  wherewith  we  in  England 
are  often  afflicted.  So  we  ourselves  while  we  were 
there  used  to  suck  it  after  their  manner  and  have  found 
many  rare  an  1  wonderful  experiments  of  its  virtues 
whereof  the  relation  would  require  a  volume  by  itself.' 

Hariot  ma  le  a  most  learned  survey  of  the  whole 
of  Virginia,  showing  its  inexhaustible  capabilities 
as  a  mercantile  possession,  and  giving  the  lie  to 
the  other  runaway  colonists,  who  cited  as  an  excuse 
for  their  failure  the  drawbacks  of  the  country. 

*Seei  ig  the  air  there,'  he  writes,  'is  so  temperate 
and  wholesome,  the  soil  so  fertile  and  yielding  such 
commodities,  the  voyage  to  and  fro  to  be  performed 
twice  a  year  with  ease  at  any  reason,  and  the  dealings 
of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  so  liberal  in  giving  and  granting 
lands  there,  with  many  other  helps  and  further- 
ances ...  I  hope  there  remains  no  cause  whereby 
the  action  should  be  misliked.'^ 

1  'A  brief  and  true  report  of  the  new  found  land  of  Virginia  of  the 
commodities  there  found  .  .  .  and  of  the  nature  and  manner  of  the 
natural  inhabitants  discovered  by  the  Enghsh  colony  there  seated 
by  Sir  R.  Grenville,  K.  T.,  in  the  year  1585,  which  remained  under  the 
government  of  Rafe  Lane,  Esq.    .    .    .   during  the  space  of  12  months; 

36 


Mewfoundland  and  Virginia 

We  cannot  help  thinking  that  the  secret  of  the 
colonists'  discouragement  was  the  paucity  of  gold 
in  the  new  country  and  the  remoteness  of  the  chance 
of  getting  rich  quickly.  To  build  up  a  fortune  slowly 
by  the  sweat  of  one's  brow  was  not  what  men  went 
abroad  for  in  those  golden  days.  Raleigh  and  Hariot 
were  before  their  time  in  being  patriotic  enough  to 
see  how  a  flourishing  agricultural  transatlantic 
province  would  prove  a  source  of  lasting  benefit  to 
the  mother-country.  The  brunt  of  the  enormous 
expense  of  the  unsuccessful  expeditions  to  Virginia 
had  been  borne  by  Raleigh,  yet  he  was  keen  to  make 
another  attempt  directly  Grenville  came  back. 

This  time  he  sent  a  hundred  and  fifty  picked  men. 
under  Governor  John   White.     They   sailed  from\ 
Portsmouth  in  April,  1587,  a  year  before  the  Armada.    J 
The  men  who  had  been  left  by  Grenville  on  the  island  / 
of  Roanoak  were  to  be  fetched  and  taken  with  them/ 
to  found  the  new  city  of  Raleigh,  in  Chesapeake 
Bay.     Alas,   their  houses  had  been  razed  to  the 
ground,  and  there  was  no  trace  of  them  left.     An 
Indian  who  knew  the  English  told  the  tale  of  their 
betrayal  and  murder.     The  Indians,  as  a  whole,  were 
no  longer  friendly  to  the  white  men,  and  efforts  to 
conciHate  them  failed.     However,  building  began 
again,  and  the  arduous  work  of  clearing  and  planting. 

White's  daughter  gave  birth  to  a  baby-girl,  to 
whom  was  given  the  name  of  Virginia.  This  was  the 
first  English  child  ever  born  in  North  America.  In 
the  midst  of  his  domestic  anxiety  the  Governor  let 

at  the  special  charge  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  K.T.  ...  by  Thomas 
Hariot,  servant  of  the  above-named  Sir  Walter,  a  member  of  the 
colony,  and  there  employed  in  the  discoverie.     London,  1588.' 

37 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

himself  be  persuaded  to  return  to  England  to  get 
fresh  stores  for  the  colony,  as  provisions  were  getting 
short.  He  came,  unfortunately,  on  the  eve  of  the 
Armada,  when  all  ships  on  the  English  coast  w^ere 
forbidden  to  go  out  of  port. 

Raleigh  managed,  with  the  utmost  difficulty,  to 
obtain  release  for  two  ships  for  the  purpose  of 
taking  colonists  and  provisions  out  to  Virginia.  The 
released  ships  chose  to  go  plundering  instead,  and 
with  Governor  White  on  board  one  of  them  they 
engaged  in  a  fracas  with  pirates.  They  came  back 
to  England,  leaving  the  unlucky  Virginian  colonists 
to  fend  for  themselves.  Raleigh  has  been  blamed  for 
heartlessly  abandoning  his  colony,  but  in  reality  he 
made  countless  further  efforts  to  rescue  the  settlers 
out  of  his  own  pocket.  ^  Money  from  other  quarters 
was  not  forthcoming  any  longer.  Adventurers 
realized  now  that  there  were  no  gold  mines  in 
Virginia,  but  preferred  looting  Spanish  ships,  an 
easier  and  more  profitable  method  of  earning  a 
living  than  tilling  the  soil — even  the  rich  and  fertile 
soil  of  a  new  world. 

Nothing  more  was  heard  of  Raleigh's  little  colony, 
in  spite  of  all  his  endeavours  to  get  in  touch  with 
it  again,  till  the  lamentable  news  reached  him  long 
afterward  that  all  the  white  men  had  been  mur- 
dered by  an  Indian  chief.  Not  for  another  twenty 
years  was  a  permanent  English  colony  established 
once  more  in  North  America,  but  Raleigh  never- 
theless had  sown  the  seeds  of  colonial  enterprise, 
and  shaken  the  arrogant  pretentions  of  Spain  to 
undisputed  lordship  of  the  West. 

1  Altogether  he  spent  £40,000  on  Virginia. 
38 


CHAPTER  VI:  TheScattering 
of  the  Armada^  and  the  Expedi- 
tion to  Lisbon  "^ 

MANY  other  important  things  had  been 
happening  in  these  years  immediately  pre- 
ceding the  defeat  of  the  Armada  besides 
Raleigh's  ill-starred  colonizing  ventures  in  Virginia. 
There  had  been  enterprises  abroad  and  overseas 
which,  whether  they  succeeded  or  failed,  stirred  the 
blood  and  set  pulses  throbbing  to  hear  about. 

Queen  Elizabeth  had  lost  the  brightest  jewel  of 
her  court  in  the  death  of  Sir  Philip  Sidney,  who,  on 
the  battle-field  of  Zutphen,  after  gallantly  fighting 
in  the  Dutch  wars,  was  wounded  mortally,  and  by 
an  act  of  divine  selfishness  gained  a  more  lasting 
fame  than  by  all  his  graces  and  talents.  In  the 
same  year  a  greater  ornament  of  her  reign,  and  one 
who  was  not  'for  an  age  but  for  all  time,'  came  up 
from  Stratford  to  London,  a  stripling  called  William 
Shakespeare,  who  had  already  written  his  Mid- 
summer Nighfs  Dream,  and  was  yet  to  write  the 
tragedies  and  comedies  that  we  all  know.  In  Ireland 
Spenser  had  been  writing  his  Faerie  Queene,  and  the 
immortal  genius  of  Christopher  Marlowe,  the  young 
Londoner  whose  life  was  to  be  cut  off  in  a  tavern 
brawl,  had  borne  splendid  fruit. 

It  was  on  a  February  day,  in  the  year  before  the 
Armada,  that  bells  had  rung  out  from  the  steeples 
to  proclaim  that  the  beautiful  head  of  the  Catholic 
Scottish  Queen,  so  long  the  captive  and  the  terror  of 
Elizabeth,  had  fallen  from  the  scaffold.     And  now 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

the  world  buzzed  with  rumours  of  the  coming 
vengeance  of  Spain,  of  the  towering  galleons  she  was 
building,  to  be  commanded  by  the  flower  of  her 
aristocracy,  destined  for  a  death-grapple  with  the 
Protestant  power;  when  old  scores  were  to  be 
settled  once  for  all  against  British  seamen,  who  had 
dared  so  insolently  to  plunder  Spanish  gold-ships 
and  sack  Spanish  towns. 

From  John  o'GroatstoLand's  End,  in  county  towns 
and  remotest  villages,  people  talked  of  the  coming  of 
the  Spaniard,  and  were  prepared  to  meet  him. 

As  a  prehminary.  Sir  Francis  Drake,  that  most 
daring  captain,  had  sailed  from  Plymouth  on  the 
*Bonventure'  straight  into  Cadiz  harbour  and  burnt 
eighty  of  Philip's  ships,  which  he  called  'singeing 
his  Spanish  Majesty's  beard,'  and  then  he  bore  on 
triumphantly  to  the  coast  of  Portugal,  where  he  saw 
the  Armada  preparing,  and  challenged  the  veteran 
Spanish  admiral,  Santa  Cruz,  to  come  forth  and  do 
battle  with  him  there  and  then.  Could  the  challenge 
have  been  accepted,  no  huge  fleet  of  Spanish  galleons, 
as  'tall  as  church  spires,'  would  have  appeared  later 
in  the  English  Channel.  But  the  great  ships  were 
not  yet  manned,  and  before  they  were  ready,  Santa 
Cruz  died,  and  Philip  appointed  as  admiral  of  the 
fleet  an  incompetent  grandee,  the  Duke  of  Medina 
Sidonia,  who  had  run  away  from  Cadiz  when  Drake 
came  into  the  harbour,  and  who  had  never  been  to 
sea  in  his  life  except  in  a  pleasure  boat.  He  left 
his  orange  gardens  with  reluctance,  and  had  no  heart 
for  his  high  quest.  All  his  hopes  were  set  on  falling 
in  with  the  Duke  of  Parma,  the  powerful  and  cruel 
Spanish  general  who  was  to  come  from  the  Nether- 

40 


The  Scattering  of  the  Armada 

lands,  where  he  had  been  persecuting  the  Flemish 
Protestants  with  the  finest  infantry  in  the  world, 
to  finish  on  land  the  work  of  destruction  to  be  begun 
by  the  Armada  at  sea. 

Elizabeth,  in  spite  of  all  the  stories  told  her  of 
these  gigantic  preparations  on  the  part  of  Spain  to 
annihilate  the  power  of  England  and  the  Protestant 
religion,  w^as  unwilling  for  war.  At  any  rate  she  re- 
fused to  declare  war,  and  in  order  to  ensure  peace, 
she  talked  of  abandoning  the  Protestant  towns 
in  the  Low  Countries,  and  giving  them  back  to 
Spain,  although  her  soldiers  had  been  pouring  out 
their  blood  like  water  to  hold  them  for  the  natives 
against  Parma.  Drake  had  won  no  open  approval 
from  the  Queen  by  his  escapade  at  Cadiz  for  this 
reason,  yet  she  w^inked  at  his  waylaying  the 
magnificent  caraque,  *San  Philip,'  loaded  with  a 
rich  cargo  from  the  Indes.  In  the  early  days  of 
June  it  was  towed  into  Dartmouth  Harbour,  and 
crowds  of  West  Country  folks,  in  holiday  attire, 
flocked  to  see  the  distribution  of  its  fabulous  freight, 
said  to  be  worth  half  a  million.  Raleigh  was  in 
Devonshire  at  the  time,  doing  his  part  in  raising  a 
contingent  of  2000  men  for  national  defence  against 
invasion.  He  was  busy,  too,  strengthening  fortifica- 
tions at  Portsmouth,  and  gave  his  advice  in  the  con- 
struction of  defences  at  Plymouth  and  Portland. 

But  this  is  all  we  know  of  his  share  in  the  glories 
of  the  Armada  victory.  It  is  disappointing  to 
have  no  record  of  this  striking  figure  of  Elizabeth's 
court,  playing  a  heroic  role  in  the  most  stirring  event 
of  her  reign.  Some  of  Raleigh's  biographers  have 
tried  to  prove  that  he  was  on  board  the  conquering 

41 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

fleet  on  the  23rd  of  July  1588  and  witnessed  the 
fighting  in  the  Channel.  History,  however,  is  silent 
on  the  subject,  and  he  certainly  can  have  had  no 
command.  We  must  be  satisfied  then  with  drawing 
an  imaginary  picture  of  the  favourite  riding  with 
the  Queen  to  that  scene  of  delirious  enthusiasm  at 
Tilbury  Camp,  when,  as  generalissimo  of  the  army, 
she  came  in  martial  pomp,  wearing  a  breastplate 
and  a  farthingale,  to  harangue  the  brave  soldiers  and 
sailors  who,  owing  to  her  short-sighted  economy,  had 
been  languishing  at  Plymouth  on  mouldy  rations  and 
bad  water.  Only  when  the  imminent  danger  which 
threatened  her  throne  and  kingdom  was  brought 
home  to  her  did  the  Queen  at  last  rise  to  the  occasion. 
The  clouds  of  depression  which  had  hung  over  her 
since  the  execution  of  her  prisoner,  Mary  Queen  of 
Scots,  dispersed,  and  she  finally  cast  to  the  winds  her 
scruples  about  going  to  war  with  her  brother-in-law, 
recognizing  indeed  that  it  was  a  case  of  war  to  the 
knife.  She  could  no  longer  blind  herself  to  the 
fact  that  Philip  had  been  plotting  against  her  life 
with  his  Jesuit  spies  and  emissaries  for  the  last 
fifteen  years,  and  that  now  Mary  was  gone,  he 
entertained  the  idea  of  putting  his  own  daughter  on 
the  English  throne  instead  of  Elizabeth,  and  making 
England  a  province  of  Spain. 

It  was  on  a  Saturday  in  July  that  the  invincible 
Armada  was  sighted  off  the  Lizard.  The  English 
fleet  under  the  Lord  High  Admiral  Howard,  Drake, 
Hawkins  and  Frobisher,  came  out  to  meet  it,  and 
these  famous  sea-dogs,  with  their  superior  fighting 
craft  and  seamanship  and  the  help  of  such  a  storm 
that  none  in  the  memory  of  man  had  been  known 

42 


•KALEIGII    RIDING    WITH  THE   QIEEX  AT    TILIU'RY    CAMP" 

— Page    1,2 


The  Scattering  of  the  Armada 

to  rage  so  long  and  fiercely,  swept  the  proud 
galleons  from  the  Channel.  That  storm  strewed  the 
coast  of  Ireland  with  the  flower  of  Spain's  nobility. 
Grandees  and  hidalgos  in  velvet  coats  and  chains  of 
gold  perished  there  miserably  of  starvation,  or  were 
plundered  and  butchered  by  the  half-savage  Irish, 
from  whom  they  had  vainly  hoped,  as  being  of  the 
same  faith  as  themselves,  comfort  and  succour. 

Thus  briefly  we  pass  over  the  all-important  victory 
in  which  Raleigh  seems  to  have  played  no  prominent 
part  (though  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the 
finest  ship  in  the  English  fleet,  the  *  Ark-Raleigh,' 
had  been  planned  and  built  by  him),  and  come  to 
the  Portuguese  expedition  of  the  following  year,  in 
which  we  find  him  active  and  associated  with  Essex. 

Englishmen  were  more  than  ever  confident,  after 
the  tragic  fate  of  the  Armada,  that  they  were  born 
to  rule  the  waves  and  be  supreme  on  the  ocean. 
The  desire  for  plundering  adventures  increased  and 
spread  among  all  classes.  English  privateers  (Ral- 
eigh's among  them)  scoured  the  seas.  It  was  a  good 
opportunity  for  Don  Antonio,  the  ex-king  of  Portu- 
gal, who  had  been  an  exile  in  England  for  eight  years, 
to  appeal  for  help  to  be  restored  to  the  Portuguese 
throne,  which  Philip  had  usurped. 

He  had  already  received  aid  from  Catharine  de' 
Medici,  the  French  Queen-Mother,  but  Elizabeth 
so  far  had  done  nothing  but  gull  him  with  fine 
promises. 

Now  an  army  of  16,000  soldiers,  with  2500  sailors, 
was  raised  w^th  the  purpose  of  reinstating  Don 
Pedro  on  his  throne,  in  retaliation  and  defiance  of 
the  King  of  Spain. 

43 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

The  land  forces  were  commanded  by  Sir  John 
Norris,  and  Drake  commanded  at  sea.  Raleigh  and 
Essex  both  joined  the  expedition  as  volunteers.  Es- 
sex was  forbidden,  of  course,  to  go  at  the  last  minute, 
and  was  so  violently  jealous  at  the  idea  of  Raleigh 
getting  away  while  he  was  detained  in  attendance 
on  the  Queen,  that  he  escaped  from  court,  rushed 
to  Plymouth  in  disguise  and  got  on  board  the  *  Swift- 
sure.'  Before  he  could  be  caught,  the  'Swiftsure' 
put  to  sea  without  Drake's  orders,  to  the  frantic 
fury  of  the  Queen,  who  held  Drake  and  Norris 
responsible  for  her  renegade  younger  favourite's  de- 
sertion. After  this  she  discountenanced  the  whole 
enterprise,  especially  as  it  did  not  attain  its  object. 
Drake  and  Raleigh  wanted  to  sail  up  the  Tagus  to 
Lisbon,  but  Don  Antonio,  with  Norris  and  Essex, 
being  soldiers  rather  than  sailors,  preferred  an  over- 
land march  to  the  city.  They  had  no  guns  and  no 
commissariat,  and  the  Portuguese,  instead  of  flinging 
wide  the  gates  of  Lisbon  and  receiving  their  returned 
sovereign  with  open  arms,  gave  no  sign  of  welcome. 
While  Drake  waited  to  re-embark  Norris's  army  off 
the  coast,  he  was  employed  in  searching  for  prizes, 
and  captured  a  number  of  German  hulks  loaded  with 
cargoes  for  the  Spaniards.  There  was  a  great  deal  of 
disputing  over  the  apportioning  of  the  treasure,  but 
probably  Raleigh  got  a  handsome  share  of  the  profits. 
On  the  return  of  the  futile  excursion  he  was  at  first 
treated  graciously  by  the  Queen  and  given  a  gold  chain 
as  a  token  of  regard,  while  his  rival  was  plunged  in  sore 
disgrace.  Before  long,  however,  Essex  succeeded  in 
pacifying  Elizabeth,  and  to  such  good  purpose  that  he 
made  the  court  temporarily  unbearable  for  Raleigh. 

44 


The  Scattering  of  the  Armada 

'My  Lord  of  Essex  hath  chased  Mr  Raleigh  from 
court  and  hath  confined  him  to  Ireland,'  wrote  a 
correspondent  of  Anthony  Bacon's. 

The  gossip  reached  Raleigh's  ears  and  his  proud 
spirit  resented  it,  for  after  his  visit  to  Ireland  he 
found  occasion  to  contradict  it  in  a  letter  to  his 
cousin,  George  Carew. 

*For  my  retreat  from  court  it  was  upon  good  cause 
to  take  order  for  my  prize,'  he  explained.  *If  in 
Ireland  they  think  that  I  am  not  worth  respecting, 
they  shall  much  deceive  themselves.  I  am  in  place 
not  inferior  to  any  man  .  .  .  and  my  opinion  is  so 
received  as  I  can  anger  the  best  of  them.    .    .    .' 

Fitzwilliams,  who  was  then  Lord  Deputy,  and 
evidently  not  friendly  to  Raleigh,  is  alluded  to  in 
the  same  letter. 

*When  Sir  William  Fitzwilliams  shall  be  in  Eng- 
land, I  take  myself  for  his  better  by  the  honourable 
offices  I  hold,  as  also  by  that  nearness  to  Her  Maj- 
esty which  I  still  enjoy,  and  never  more.    .    .    . ' 

It  is  true  enough  that  Raleigh  had  plenty  to  do 
in  Ireland.  The  planting,  mining,  draining  and 
cultivation  of  his  extensive  estates  kept  him  well 
employed,  and  he  rebuilt  the  Castle  of  Lismore  in 
splendid  style.  Besides,  he  found  time  to  cultivate 
literature  which,  in  the  manifold  occupations  of  his 
life  as  courtier,  member  of  Parliament,  and  Empire- 
builder,  he  had  been  bound  to  neglect,  much  as  he 
loved  it.  So,  whether  or  no  his  'retreat'  to  Ireland 
was  enforced,  it  brought  him  many  compensations, 
among  them,  as  we  shall  see,  first  and  foremost,  the 
friendship  of  Edmund  Spenser,  Hhe  poets'  poet.' 


45 


CHAPTER  VII:   Raleigh  and 
Spenser 

NINE  years  before,  in  the  time  of  the 
Desmond  rebelKon,  when  Captain  Raleigh 
had  been  so  active  in  clearing  Munster  of 
the  unfortunate  Irish  at  the  point  of  the  sword, 
Edmund  Spenser  was  Lord  Grey's  secretary,  and 
the  two  young  poets  had  become  acquainted. 
But  their  lives  had  since  been  cast  in  different 
places,  and  it  was  not  till  this  breathing-space  for 
Raleigh,  in  the  year  after  the  Armada,  that  they 
met  again. 

The  old  castle  of  Kilcolman,  in  which  Spenser 
lived  for  ten  years  in  peaceful  seclusion,  had  belong- 
ed to  the  hunted  earls  of  Desmond.  It  was  a  roman- 
tic, half -ruined  abode,  standing  on  the  north  side  of 
a  lake,  with  a  view  of  half  the  breadth  of  Ireland. 
Here,  amidst  the  green  woodlands  and  misty  blue 
mountains,  Spenser  'sweetly  sang,'  and  produced 
his  immortal  poems.  Here  his  old  Cambridge  friend, 
the  pedantic  scholar,  Gabriel  Harvey,  was  his  guest, 
and  here  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  when  he  was  in  Cork 
in  1589,  came  over  from  his  neighbouring  castle  of 
Lismore  to  visit  him,  and,  later,  to  carry  off  the  poet 
for  a  time  to  Gloriana's  court,  where  the  lustre  of 
his  genius  might  shine  before  men  instead  of  being 
buried  in  the  wilds  of  Ireland. 

A  full  account  of  this  memorable  visit  of  Raleigh's 
to  Spenser  is  given  in  Colin  Clout's  Come  Home 
Againe,  the  quaint  and  charming  autobiographical 
poem  which  Spenser  wrote  and  dedicated  to  the 

46 


Raleigh  and  Spenser 

*  Shepherd  of  the  Ocean'  when  he  returned  to  Ire- 
land from  London  in  1591. 

CoHn  tells  his  brother  shepherds  of  his  'passed 
fortunes,'  and  begins  with  Raleigh's  visit.  One  day 
he  relates  that,  as  he  sat 

Under  the  foote  of  Mole,  that  mountain  hore. 

Keeping  my  sheep  among  the  coolly  shade 

Of  the  green  alders  by  the  Mullai  shore. 

There  a  strange  shepherd  chanced  to  find  me  out. 

Whether  allured  with  my  pipe's  delight. 

Whose  pleasing  sound  yshrilled  far  about, 

Or  whether  led  by  chance,  I  know  not  right. 

Whom  when  I  asked  from  what  place  he  came. 

And  how  he  hight  himself  he  did  ycleepe 

The  Shepherd  of  the  Ocean  by  name. 

And  said  he  came  from  the  main  sea  deep. 

He  sitting  me  beside  in  that  same  shade 

Provoked  me  to  play  some  pleasant  fit. 

And  when  he  heard  the  music  that  I  made 

He  found  himself  full  greatly  pleased  at  it. 

Then  his  guest,  *as  skilful  in  that  art  as  any,' 

*  piped' — 

His  song  was  all  a  lamentable  lay 

Of  great  unkindness  and  of  usage  hard, 

Of  Cynthia  the  ladie  of  the  sea,^ 

Which  from  her  presence  faultless  him  debarred. 

And  ever  and  anon  with  singults  rife 

He  cried  out  to  make  his  undersong; 

Ah!  my  love's  Queen  and  goddess  of  my  life. 

Who  shall  me  pity  when  thou  dost  me  wrong. 

And  after  they  had  done  singing  and  piping  in 
turn,  the  Shepherd  of  the  Ocean 

Queen  Elizabeth. 
47 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

Gan  to  cast  great  lyking  to  my  lore. 
And  great  dislj'king  to  my  luckless  lot 
That  banisht  had  myself  like  wight  forlorn 
Into  that  waste  where  I  was  quite  forgot. 

And  then  Raleigh  persuaded  Colin  to  accompany 
him  'his  Cynthia  to  see.' 

He  took  with  him  the  MS.  of  the  first  three  books 
of  The  Faerie  Queene,  which  were  ready  for  publica- 
tion and  dedicated  to  the 

Most  Mightie  and  Magnificent 
EMPRESSE 

RENOWNED  FOR  PIETIE,  VIRTUE,  AND  ALL  GRATIOUS  GOVERNMENT 

ELIZABETH 

BY  THE  Grace  of  God 
Queen  of  England,  France  and  Ireland,  -and  of  Virginia 

No  doubt  it  w^as  Spenser's  great  desire  to  get  his 
masterpiece  (as  far  as  he  had  written  it)  published 
that  led  to  his  accepting  Raleigh's  invitation.  Sir 
Walter,  on  his  side,  may  have  washed  to  introduce 
his  friend  at  court  as  a  peace-offering  to  his  offended 
Queen.  If  this  was  so,  the  plan  met  with  complete 
success,  for  all  misunderstanding  vanished  and  he 
was  restored  to  favour.  Spenser  was  presented  by 
him  to  Elizabeth,  and  she  was  not  slow  to  recognize 
his  genius. 

'That  goddess,'  he  says: 

To  mine  oaten  pipe  enclin'd  her  ear 
That  she  thenceforth  therein  gan  take  delight. 
And  it  desired  at  timelj'  hours  to  hear 
Al  were  my  notes  but  rude  and  roughly  dight. 
48 


Raleigh  and  Spenser 

The  letter  of  the  author's,  prefixed  to  his  poem 
(dated  Jan.  3rd,  1589),  'expounding  the  whole  in- 
tention in  the  course  of  this  worke  which  for  that  it 
giveth  great  light  to  the  reader  for  the  better  under- 
standing is  hereunto  annexed,'  was  addressed  to 
*Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  Knight,  Lord  Warden  of  the 
Stanneries  and  her  Majesty's  Liefetenant  of  the 
County  of  CornewaylL'  Shortly  afterward,  in  1590, 
Master  William  Ponsonby  published  'The  Faerie 
Qiieene  Disposed  into  Twelve  Books,  Fashioning  XII 
moral  virtues.' 

Thus  to  Raleigh's  critical  insight  was  due  the 
appearance  of  the  wonderful  allegory,  the  great 
awakening  in  English  poetry  for  which  men  had 
been  waiting  in  vain  since  Chaucer  died,  and  for  this 
alone  the  world  owes  him  a  debt  of  gratitude. 

The  Queen's  patronage  obtained  for  Spenser  a 
pension  of  £50  a  year,  though  her  treasurer.  Lord 
Burleigh,  grumbled  at  paying  it,  and  said,  'What.? 
All   this  for  a   song.?'     The  poet   had   caught  to 
perfection  the  trick  of  flattery  which  Elizabeth's 
vanity  and  belief  in  her  unfading  charms  had  made 
the  fashion  of  the  time.     The  Faerie  Queene  immortal- 
ized her  as  Gloriana,  the  Empress  of  all  Nobleness; 
Belphoebe,  the  princess  of  all  that  was  sweet  and 
beautiful;   Brotomart,    the   armed   vestal   of  pure 
Chastity,   and    Mercilla,   the    compassionate    and 
gentle,  and  it  was  herself  in  the  poem  more  than 
the  poem  itself  which  delighted  the  Queen.     The 
great  literature   then  springing  up,   of  which  she 
was  the  supposed  inspiration,  was  really  little  more 
to  her,^  in  spite  of  her  great  learning  and  scholarly 
education,  than  a  monument  of  that  stupendous 

49 


Sir  JVa/ter  Raleigh 

flattery  for  which  her  appetite  was  insatiable,  and 
to  which  all  the  men  of  light  and  leading  of  those 
times  so  shamelessly  pandered.  Probably  the  ex- 
quisite music  was  lost  on  her  of  the  *  lovely  lay' 
of  Temptation  and  other  glorious  passages  in  which 
she  was  not  referred  to,  while  she  gloated  on 
being  likened  to 

A  crown  of  lilies 
Upon  a  virgin  brydes  adorned  head 
With  roses  dight  and  golden  daffodillies  new. 

Great  as  was  the  general  delight  and  enchantment 
with  which  the  first  three  books  of  The  Faerie  Queene 
were  hailed,  it  is  probable  that,  then  as  now,  those 
who  appreciated  the  beauty  and  spirituality  of  the 
poem  most  were  men  of  the  same  craft.  It  depicted 
a  world  that  was  departed,  the  world  of  chivalry 
and  romance.  It  was  animated  by  the  spirit  of  the 
past,  and  its  very  language  was  archaic,  so  that  it 
was  bound  to  appeal  more  to  the  cultured  few  than 
to  the  community  at  large. 

In  spite  of  its  instantaneous  success,  Spenser 
went  back,  after  a  year  and,  a  half's  sojourn  in 
London,  to  his  old  castle  in  Ireland,  a  disappointed 
man.  The  glamour  of  the  court  of  Gloriana  had 
soon  worn  off  for  the  poet:  its  intrigues,  self-seekings 
and  scandals  had  no  charm  for  him,  and  when  once 
more  settled  in  his  own  home  he  recorded  his  bitter 
regret  at  having  remained  there  so  long  in  hopes 
of  advancement. 

For  little  knowest  thou  that  hast  not  tried 
What  hell  it  is  in  suing  long  to  bide. 
To  locse  good  dayes  that  might  be  better  spent, 
50 


Raleigh  and  Spenser 

To  waste  long  nights  in  pensive  discontent. 
To  spend  to-day,  to  be  put  back  to-morrow. 
To  feed  on  hope,  to  pine  with  fear  and  sorrow. 


As  he  sat  again  in  his  quiet  retreat  in  the  *  saddest 
of  all  countries/ as  he  himself  described  it,  'though 
as  beautiful  as  any  under  heaven,'  he  reviewed  the 
splendid  scenes  he  had  lately  visited,  enumerated 
the  famous  wits  he  had  met  and  the  lovely  ladies' 
he  had  seen  in  London,  and  dedicated  this  quaint] 
diary  to  the  friend  who  had  introduced  him  into; 
the  brilliant  world  of  court  society. 

The  latter,  much  as  he  might  cherish  the  gentle^ 
poet's  friendship  and  company,  had  become  more 
and  more  absorbed  in  those  great  schemes  in  which 
public  spirit  and  private  greed  were  so  singularly 
mingled.  Often  Spenser  must  have  waited,  neg- 
lected, in  Raleigh's  ante-chamber  at  Durham  House 
while  Sir  Walter  interviewed  the  captains  of  his  pri- 
vateers and  other  mariners  and  travellers  from  the 
high  seas.  The  restless  man  of  action  was  a  little 
intolerant,  perhaps,  of  the  poet's  dreaminess,  and 
seems  to  have  reproached  Spenser  with  being  lazy. 

*That  you  may  see,'  he  wrote,  'that  I  am  not 
always  idle  as  you  think,  though  not  greatly  well 
occupied,  nor  altogether  undutiful,  though  not  pre- 
cisely officious  I  make  you  present  of  this  simple 
pastoral,  unworthie  of  your  higher  conceit  for  the 
meanesse  of  the  stile,  but  agreeing  with  the  truth 
in  circumstance  and  matter.  For  which  I  humbly 
beseech  you  to  accept  in  part  of  paiment  of  the 
infinite  debt  in  which  I  acknowledge  myself  boun- 
den  unto  you  for  your  singular  favours  and  sundrie 

51 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

good  turnes  shewed  to  me  at  my  late  being  in 
England.' 

And  this  may  be  a  convenient  place  to  consider 
Faleigh  not  only  as  the  patron  of  a  poet,  but  as  a 
poet  himself. 

His  letters  and  the  fragments  of  his  mighty  History 
of  the  Worlds  which  belongs  to  the  last  and  most 
tragic  phase  of  his  long  career,  prove  him  to  have 
been  one  of  the  most  consummate  masters  of  digni- 
fied prose.  But  not  much  of  his  authenticated 
poetry  has  come  down  to  us,  yet  he  must  have 
written  a  great  deal  at  one  time  or  another.  He 
set  little  store  by  his  verse,  and  rarely  took  the 
trouble  to  have  it  printed.  For  the  most  part  he 
appears  to  have  regarded  the  making  of  verse  as 
merely  a  distraction  for  his  scant  hours  of  leisure. 

A  contemporary  gave  his  poetry  the  following 
praise: 

*For  ditty  and  amorous  ode,  I  find  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh's  vein  most  lofty,  insolent  and  passionate,'^ 

A  finer  compliment  still  is  paid  to  his  muse  in 
Spenser's  beautiful  sonnet  at  the  end  of  The  Faerie 
Queene,  beginning: 

To  thee  that  are  the  Summer's  Nightingale, 
Thy  sovereign  goddess's  most  dear  delight. 
Why  do  I  send  this  rustic  madrigal 
That  may  thy  tuneful  ears  unseason  quite? 

In  answer  to  Spenser's  address  to  him  in  The 
Faerie  Queene,  Raleigh  wrote  an  exquisite  sonnet, 
and  the  man  who  could  write  it,  even  if  he  had  never 

^Pattenham's  Art  of  Poesie. 
52 


Raleigh  and  Spenser 

written  another  line,  might  certainly  claim  to  be  a 
poet  of  the  first  rank. 

Methought  I  saw  the  grave  where  Laura  lay 

Within  that  temple  where  the  vestal  flame 

Was  wont  to  burn;  and  passing  by  that  way 

To  see  that  buried  dust  of  living  fame, 

Whose  tomb  fair  love  and  fairer  virtue  kept. 

All  suddenly  I  saw  the  Faerie  Queen, 

At  whose  approach  the  soul  of  Petrarch  wept; 

And  from  thenceforth  those  graces  were  not  seen 

For  they  this  Queen  attended;  in  whose  stead 

Oblivion  laid  him  down  on  Laura's  hearse. 

Hereat  the  hardest  stones  were  seen  to  bleed. 

And  groans  of  buried  ghosts  the  heavens  did  pierce, 

Where  Homer's  sprite  did  tremble  all  for  grief, 

And  cursed  the  access  of  that  celestial  thief. 

The  authorship  of  a  poem  written  in  reply  to 
Marlowe's  jocund  pastoral,  Come  Live  -wUhme, 
OTidbe  my  Love,  had  been  ascribed  to  Raleigh, 
but  tliere  is  no  evidence  to  support  the  assumption 
that  he  wrote  it,  though  the  lines  are  tinged  with  a 
melancholy  pessimism  very  characteristic  of  the 
mood  in  which  Raleigh  seems  to  have  indited  most 
of  his  verse.  In  his  rarer,  lighter  vein,  however,  he 
could  throw  off  with  ease  light  and  playful  trifles, 
such  ^sPhillidas  Love  Call  to  her  Cory  don,  which 
breathes  the  air  of  the  country-side  and  the  ingenu- 
ous joys  of  Arcadia. 

What  Spenser  called  Raleigh's  'excellent  conceit 
of  Cynthia'  was  supposed  to  have  been  entirely  lost 
till  quite  recently,  when  a  sequel  to  it,  in  the  hand- 
writing of  Raleigh,  was  found  at  Hatfield. 

When  he  was  only  twenty-four,  and  still  quite 
unknown  to  fame,  Raleigh  wrote  the  dedicatory 

53 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

stanzas  to  a  satirical  poem  by  his  fellow  law-student, 
George  Gascoign,  The  Steel  Glass.  They  contained 
a  couplet,  often  quoted  to-day,  strangely  prophetic 
of  the  unpopularity  his  climb  to  the  top  of  the  ladder 
brought  him : 

For  who  so  reaps  renown  above  the  rest, 
With  heaps  of  hate  shall  surely  be  oppressed. 

Undoubtedly  Raleigh's  best  efforts  were  inspired 
by  despondency  and  depression  and  not  written  in 
his  glittering  hours  of  success.  The  Lie  is  full  of 
bitterness  and  revolt,  and  brought  many  scathing 
retorts  from  its  author's  enemies.  His  finest  literary 
work  indeed,  both  in  prose  and  verse,  was  accom- 
plished in  the  quietude  of  prison  life. 

*His  imprisonments,'  says  Prof.  Hales  in  The 
English  Poets,  'were  in  fact  his  salvation.  Through 
the  Traitor's  Gate  he  passed  to  a  tranquillity  and 
thoughtfulness  for  which  there  was  no  opportunity 
outside.  In  his  cell  in  the  White  Tower  his  soul 
found  and  enjoyed  a  real  freedom.' 


54 


CHAPTER:  yil  'The Revenge' 
and  Raleigh' s  Marriage 

THE  way  was  paved  for  Raleigh's  reconcilia- 
tion with  his  royal  mistress  still  further 
when  he  arrived  at  Court  with  Spenser, 
in  1590,  by  the  death  of  Leicester,  followed  soon 
afterward  by  the  deaths  of  Hatton,  the  dancing 
chancellor,  and  of  Walsingham. 

Another  event  which  militated  in  his  favour  was 
that  Essex  was  in  dire  disgrace  through  his  clan- 
destine marriage  with  Sir  Philip  Sidney's  widow, 
whom  the  Queen  considered  'beneath  his  degree,' 
and  treated  in  the  most  insulting  manner.  The 
bride  lived  'very  retired  in  her  mother's  house,' 
and  was  ignored  by  the  court,  but  the  bridegroom 
before  long  was  forgiven  by  his  infatuated  sover- 
eign, though  not  before  Raleigh  had  managed  to 
step  gracefully  again  into  the  position  of  first 
favourite.  He  made  hay  while  the  sun  shone,  and 
during  Essex's  absence  in  France,  where,  to  the 
warlike  young  Earl's  great  satisfaction,  he  was 
marshalling  a  force  under  King  Henry  of  Navarre 
against  Spain,  Raleigh  obtained  the  appointment 
of  vice-admiral  of  a  fleet,  to  be  sent  to  the  Azores  to 
intercept  one  of  Philip's  on  its  way  back  from  the 
West. 

The  Crown  countenanced  secretly  these  plunder- 
ing enterprises,  which  were  really  nothing  better 
than  piratical  buccaneering.  It  was  the  rage  for 
young  English  gentlemen  of  quality  to  seek  fame 
and  fortune  on  the  high  seas,  and  it  afforded  them 
the  same  sort  of  excitement  as  football  and  horse- 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

racing  does  in  these  days.  Spanish  ships  were  to  be 
met  with  all  over  the  ocean,  and  they  were  consid- 
ered fair  game  in  times  of  war  or  peace. 

Though  she  was  careful  to  risk  as  little  as  possible, 
the  grasping  Queen  invariably  netted  the  largest 
share  of  the  profits.  Sometimes  she  made  a  pre- 
tence of  disapproval  at  her  admirals  behaving  like 
common  pirates,  but  she  never  failed  to  haggle  with 
them  afterward  over  the  booty.  Once  when  she 
had  feigned  great  wrath  with  Raleigh  for  allowing 
his  privateers  to  plunder  certain  ships,  she  neverthe- 
less asserted  her  right  to  a  'carnation  waistcoat' 
which  had  been  taken  from  a  Spanish  grandee,  and 
appealed  irresistibly  to  her  love  of  fine  apparel. 

The  expedition  to  the  Azores  in  question  w^as 
planned  to  waylay  Philip's  silver  fleet,  and  if  it 
succeeded  would  be  enormously  profitable  to  Raleigh 
and  all  concerned.  Lord  Howard  was  to  be  in 
supreme  command  of  the  squadron,  consisting  of 
%N^  of  the  Queen's  ships,  some  cargo  ships  belonging 
to  the  city  of  London,  and  the  'Bark-Raleigh.' 

But  when  it  came  to  the  point,  Elizabeth  refused 
to  spare  her  Captain  of  the  Guard,  Essex  being  still 
away  in  France.  Raleigh's  cousin,  the  old  sea-dog 
of  Devon,  Sir  Richard  Grenville,  was  appointed 
vice-admiral  instead  of  him,  and  it  is  easy  to  under- 
stand how  his  adventurous  kinsman  must  have 
chafed  and  fumed  with  disappointment. 

The  expedition  started  in  the  early  spring,  but  the 
silver  fleet  had  been  detained  that  year  by  heavy 
gales  on  the  American  coast,  and  Howard's  ships 
waited  for  it  all  through  the  summer  and  autumn. 
While  they  were  at  anchor  off  Floras,  the  men  suffer- 

56 


The  Revenge 

ing  from  scurvy  and  fever,  and  several  of  the  crews 
ashore,  the  Spanish  fleet,  consisting  of  two  squadrons 
of  fifty-three  ships  each  well  manned  and  all  ready 
and  trim  for  action,  sailed  up.  So  rapidly  did  they 
come  that  some  of  the  English  ships  had  not  time  to 
obey  Lord  Howard's  order  to  weigh  anchor  and  get 
away.  Sir  Richard  Grenville,  on  his  little  '  Revenge' 
waited  to  take  up  the  men  who  were  ashore,  and 
found  himself  in  a  tight  place  between  the  coast  and 
the  Spaniards.  His  one  chance  of  escape  was  to 
turn  sail  briskly,  and  he  was  advised  to  take  this 
course. 

*No,'  replied  the  old  seaman,  'I  would  rather  die 
than  dishonour  myself,  my  country,  and  Her 
Majesty's  ship  by  flying  from  Spaniards.  I  will 
force  my  way  through. ' 

Now  followed  the  wonderful  and  celebrated  fight 
of  which  the  English  navy  has  a  right  to  be  proud. 
A  poet  of  our  own  day  has  sung  of  it  (who  does  not 
know  Tennyson's  lines) : 

Into  the  hands  of  God,  but 
Not  into  the  hands  of  Spain, 

and  Raleigh  made  his  debut  as  a  writer  of  prose 
by  contributing  a  graphic  account  of  it  to  Hakluyt's 
tales  of  travel.  Though  he  was  not  present,  he 
heard  the  story  from  eye-witnesses,  and  described  it 
vividly  in  his  'Report  of  the  Truth  of  the  Fight 
about  the  Azores. ' 

Tall  and  mighty  galleons  crowded  round  the  little 
'Revenge'  and  wedged  her  in.  Again  and  again  its 
decks  were  swept  by  Spanish  musketry,  and  Span- 
iards swarmed  like  ants  up  its  sides  to  be  dashed 

57 


Sir  TValter  Raleigh 

back  headlong  into  the  sea.  All  night  the  battle 
raged  and  the  boom  of  the  guns  rose  above  the  shouts 
of  command  and  the  moans  of  the  dying.  Single- 
handed,  Grenville  opposed  his  ship  to  fifteen  great 
galleons,  and  after  he  himself  had  been  riddled  and 
shattered  by  severe  wounds,  he  still  stood  upon  the 
poop  with  blazing  eyes  and  grinding  teeth. 

*  Nothing  was  to  be  seen,'  writes  Raleigh  in  his 
account  of  the  fray,  'but  the  naked  hull  of  a  ship 
and  that  almost  a  skeleton,  having  received  800 
shell  of  great  artillery;  her  deck  covered  with  the 
limbs  and  carcases  of  40  valiant  men,  the  rest  all 
wounded  and  painted  with  their  own  blood;  her 
masts  beat  overboard,  all  her  tackle  cut  asunder  and 
she  herself  incapable  of  receiving  any  direction  or 
motion  except  that  given  her  by  the  billows. ' 

When  all  hope  was  dead,  and  men,  arms  and  am- 
munition had  almost  come  to  an  end.  Sir  Richard 
ordered  the  ship  to  be  sunk.  But  the  men  thought 
that  enough  had  been  done  for  honour  that  day, 
and  it  would  be  no  disgrace  now  to  accept  the  terms 
the  admiring  Spaniards  were  willing  to  offer.  So 
the  brave  old  lion  allowed  himself  to  be  reasoned 
with  and  at  last  gave  in.  Half -dying  they  carried 
him  from  the  shambles  of  his  deck  on  to  a  Spanish 
ship,  where  he  and  the  battered  remnant  of  his  crew 
were  chivalrously  tended  by  the  enemy.  He  died 
three  days  afterward  uttering  the  famous  words, 
'Here  dies  Richard  Grenville  with  a  joyful  and 
quiet  mind,  having  ended  my  life  like  a  true  soldier 
that  has  fought  for  his  country,  Queen,  religion  and 
honour.' 

Nothing  daunted  by  the  ill-success  of  this  venture, 

58 


'THE    BATTLE    BETWEEN    THE    SPANISH    FLEET   AND    THE 
REVENGE— Pof/e   57 


The  Revenge 

Raleigh  soon  had  another  on  foot  to  avenge  his  noble 
kinsman  Grenville's  death.  The  winter  of  1591-92 
found  him  busy  planning  an  expedition  on  a  large 
scale,  with  the  twofold  object  in  view  of  an  attack 
upon  the  Spanish  settlement  of  Panama  and  the 
raiding  of  another  fleet  of  silver-laden  caracks  from 
the  West  Indies.  He  flung  himself  passionately  and 
recklessly  into  the  preparations  for  this  great  new 
coup,  and  staked  all  he  had  on  the  enterprise.  By 
the  time  spring  came  his  plans  were  ripe,  and  he 
strained  like  a  hound  on  the  leash  to  put  them  into 
execution.  Raleigh's  violent  invectives  against  the 
ambition  of  Spain  in  his  vigorous  before-mentioned 
'Report  of  the  Truth  of  the  Fight  about  the  Isle 
of  the  Azores  between  the  Revenge  and  an  Armada 
of  the  King  of  Spain,'  had  hit  their  mark,  and  so 
stirred  up  the  old  animus  that  capital  flowed  in. 

Thirteen  fair  ships  supplied  by  adventurers  lay 
in  Chatham  dockyard,  and  two  men-of-war  con- 
tributed by  the  Queen,  'The  Garland'  and  'The 
Foresight,'  lay  at  Greenwich.  This  time  Raleigh 
w^as  to  have  supreme  command,  his  vice-admiral 
being  Sir  John  Borough.  The  fleet  was  ready  to 
start,  but  delayed  by  an  unusually  long  spell  of 
contrary  winds.  One  can  imagine  the  impatience 
of  Raleigh  with  the  elements.  He  dreaded  that  at 
any  moment  the  Queen  might  change  her  mind 
about  letting  him  go.  For  already  she  had  begun 
to  talk  of  his  yielding  up  the  command  to  Frobisher, 
and  just  at  this  time  Raleigh  knew  that  he  walked 
on  the  edge  of  a  volcano  with  regard  to  his  relations 
with  the  Queen. 

He  had  followed  Essex's  example  and  made  a 

59 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

secret  marriage.  Beautiful  Elizabeth  Throgmor- 
ton,Hlie  fairest  of  the  Queen's  maids  of  honour,  had 
captured  his  heart  long  before,  but  he  had  not  dared 
to  declare  his  love  openly  for  fear  of  exciting  her 
Majesty's  jealous  wrath.  In  spite  of  the  secrecy 
and  caution  with  which  Sir  Walter's  courtship  had 
been  conducted,  rumours  of  it  were  now  rife. 

*Sir  Walter  Raleigh  as  it  seemeth  hath  been  too 
inward  with  one  of  her  Majesty's  maids,'  wTote  a 
gossip  of  the  court.  *I  fear  to  say  who.  He  hath 
escaped  from  London  for  a  time;  he  will  be  speedily 
sent  for  and  brought  back  and  what  awaiteth  him 
no  one  knows  except  by  conjecture.  All  think  the 
Tower  will  be  his  dwelling,  like  hermit  poor  in 
pensive  place,  where  he  may  spend  his  endless  days 
of  doubt.' 

The  Queen  had  not  so  far  got  wind  of  the  report 
about  her  favourite,  and  dread  of  discovery  still 
hung  like  a  sword  of  Damocles  over  his  handsome 
head. 

As  he  gazed  at  his  noble  ships  in  Chatham  port, 
waiting  for  the  favourable  breeze,  which  fate  per- 
versely withheld,  to  spread  their  sails  at  his  word  of 

1  She  was  the  daughter  of  Sir  Nicholas  Throgmorton,  who  had  been 
in  the  Tower  in  Queen  Mary's  reign  for  supposed  complicity  in  Wyatt's 
rebellion.  Queen  Elizabeth  held  him  in  high  esteem,  and  made  him 
her  Chief  Butler  and  Chamberlain  of  the  Exchequer.  A  portrait  of 
Lady  Raleigh,  'painted  by  some  masterly  hand  in  1600,'  is  described 
by  Hentzler  in  his  Travels  through  England  as  being  of  'A  fair  and 
handsome  woman  turned  perhaps  of  thirty — she  has  on  a  dark- 
coloured  hanging  sleeve  robe  tufted  on  the  arms.  Under  it  a  close- 
bodied  gown  of  white  satin  flowered  with  black  with  sleeves  down 
to  the  wrist  ...  a  lace  whisk  rising  above  her  shoulders,  a  bosom 
uncovered  and  a  jewel  banging  thereon.' 

60 


The  Revenge 

command,  the  thought  of  what  delay  might  mean 
almost  maddened  Raleigh  and  made  for  the  moment 
a  coward  of  him.  He,  the  man  of  great  intellect, 
chivalrous  instincts,  and  generous  impulses;  he  who 
had  brought  the  ideals  of  the  knight  errant  of 
Spenserian  romance  into  practical  life;  who  was 
to  display  a  careless  courage  and  splendid  gallantry 
in  many  an  adventure  before  he  passed  through 
Traitor's  Gate — this  man  was  base  enough  to  give 
the  lie  direct  to  rumours  of  his  marriage  with  a 
lovely  girl,  who  made  him  the  noblest  and  most 
devoted  of  wives  till  his  chequered  life  was  ended. 

*I  mean  not  to  come  away,'  he  wrote  to  the 
Queen's  secretary,  Robert  Cecil,  from  Chatham,  'as 
they  say  I  will  for  fear  of  a  marriage.  If  any  such 
thing  were  I  would  have  imparted  it  to  yourself  before 
any  man  living,  and  therefore  I  pray  believe  it  not, 
and  I  beseech  you  to  suppress  any  such  malicious 
report.  For  I  protest  before  God  there  is  none  on 
the  face  of  the  earth  that  I  would  be  fastened  to.' 

Westerly  breezes  continued  to  keep  the  fleet  port- 
bound  all  through  April,  and  Raleigh  on  tenter- 
hooks. We  can  fancy  how,  as  he  looked  out  on  the 
grey  and  silent  river  and  the  great  ships  anchored 
there  motionless,  tantalizing  visions  of  them  racing 
over  the  green  bosom  of  the  open  sea,  with  all  their 
pearly  sails,  fore  and  aft,  billowing  above  the  brown 
shapely  hulls,  arose  before  his  eyes  to  make  theirs 
and  his  enforced  inactivity  a  positive  torture. 

He  wrote  despondently  that  he  was  *  more  grieved 
for  this  cross  weather  *'than  he  had  ever  been"  for 
anything  in  this  world.' 

Not  till  the  end  of  May  did  the  wind  change  to  the 

61 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

right  quarter,  and  come  rioting  dry  and  boisterous 
from  the  east.  Then  the  squadron  put  to  sea, 
but  it  had  scarcely  set  sail  before  Frobisher  followed 
with  orders  that  he  was  to  come  back  to  court  with- 
out delay.  However,  trusting  that  his  denial  of  the 
rumours  concerning  his  marriage  would  be  believed, 
he  had  the  temerity  to  continue  his  voyage  in  defi- 
ance of  the  Queen's  command.  All  would  be  well, 
he  thought,  if  he  returned  covered  with  glory.  But 
this  was  not  to  be.  Information  reached  him  that 
the  Spanish  plate  fleet  was  not  going  to  venture 
forth  this  season,  and  it  was  too  late  in  the  year  for 
the  attack  on  Panama.  He  was  further  disheart- 
ened by  a  storm  off  Cape  Finisterre.  So  he  dis- 
patched one  detachment  of  his  damaged  ships  under 
Frobisher  to  the  coast  of  Spain, '  therebye  to  amuse 
the  Spanish  fleet,'  and  sent  Borough  with  the  rest  to 
the  Azores  on  plunder  bent,  while  he  himself  reluc- 
tantly turned  tail  to  obey  the  Queen's  behest.  When 
lie  reached  England  he  soon  learnt  that  a  worse 
storm  than  that  which  he  had  encountered  at  Finis- 
terre awaited  him  in  London.  The  story  of  his  mar- 
riage to  the  fair  maid  of  honour  had  come  out  at 
court,  and  the  Queen,  to  whom  all  marriages  among 
her  exalted  subjects  was  a  personal  affront,  though 
she  sometimes  danced  at  the  weddings  of  humbler 
people,  w^as  *  fiercely  incensed.' 

This  was  a  far  more  serious  affair  than  the  favour- 
ite's first  disgrace.  He  was  arrested  and  put  in  the 
Tower,  to  the  unqualified  joy  of  his  enemies,  the 
friends  of  Essex,and  though  released  after  eight  weeks' 
captivity,  it  was  many  a  long  day  before  he  was  for- 
given and  admitted  as  of  old  to  the  royal  presence. 

62 


I 


CHAPTER  IX:    The  'Madre 
de  Dios'^ 

T  cannot  be  said  that  Raleigh  endured  his  first 
taste  of  imprisonment  in  the  Tower  with  dignity 

and  patience.     On  the  contrary,  his  efforts  to 

appease  the  infuriated  Queen,  even  when  we  make 
allowances  for  the  exaggerated  flattery  that  was  the 
fashion  of  the  time,  seems  to  us  grovelling  and  con- 
temptible. In  a  letter  dated  from  the  Tower  to 
Robert  Cecil,  he  wrote  in  the  following  highfalutin 
strain: 

''My  heart  was  never  broken  till  this  day  that  I 
hear  the  Queen  goes  so  far  off — (she  was  starting 
on  one  of  her  Progresses) — whom  I  have  followed  so 
many  years  with  so  great  love  and  desire  in  so  many 
journeys,  and  am  now  left  behind  her  in  a  dark 
prison  all  alone.  While  she  was  yet  near  at  hand 
that  I  might  hear  of  her  once  in  two  or  three  days  my 
sorrows  were  less,  but  even  now  my  heart  is  cast  into 
the  depths  of  all  misery.  I  that  was  wont  to  behold 
her  riding  like  Alexander,  hunting  like  Diana,  walk- 
ing like  Venus,  the  gentle  wind  blowing  her  fair  hair 
about  her  pure  cheeks  like  a  nymph,  sometimes 
sitting  in  the  shade  like  a  goddess,  sometimes  sing- 
ing like  an  angel,  sometimes  playing  like  Orpheus. 
Behold  the  sorrow  of  this  world!  Once  amiss  hath 
bereaved  me  of  all.  .  .  .  Who  is  the  judge  of  friend- 
ship but  adversity?  or  when  is  grace  witnessed  but 
in  offences.?  There  were  no  divinity  but  by  reason 
of  compassion,  for  revenges  are  brutish  and  mortal. 
All  those  times  past— the  loves,  the  sighs,  the  sor- 
rows, the  desires,  can  they  not  weigh  down  one  frail 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

misfortune?  Cannot  one  drop  of  gall  be  hidden  in 
so  great  heaps  of  sweetness?  I  may  then  conclude 
^^es  etfortuna  valete.  She  is  gone  in  whom  I  trusted 
and  of  me  hath  not  one  thought  of  mercy,  nor  any 
respect  of  that  that  was.  Do  write  me  therefore 
what  you  list.  I  am  more  weary  of  life  than  they 
are  desirous  I  should  perish,  which,  if  it  had  been 
for  her,  as  it  is  by  her,  I  had  been  too  happily  born. 
Yours  not  worthy  any  name  or  title. — W.  R." 

A  sardonic  smile  must  have  flitted  over  the  face 
of  the  hunch-backed  secretary,  Cecil,  as  he  read 
this  effusion,  knowing  as  he  did  that  it  was  not  meant 
for  his  eye  alone,  but  that  the  writer  lived  in  hopes 
of  his  letter  being  passed  on  to  her  Majesty. 

From  his  prison  window,  Raleigh  beheld  one  day 
the  Queen's  barge  pass  by,  and  the  Queen  herself 
standing  on  the  deck.  This  gave  him  the  opportunity 
of  acting,  or  rather  over-acting,  a  role.  He  stretched 
out  his  arms  and  swore  that  it  was  the  "torment  of 
Tantalus"  to  see  his  mistress  thus  and  not  to  go  to 
her.  But  he  would  go  to  her,  he  vowed,  as  he  made 
a  feint  of  getting  out  of  the  window,  but  Sir  George 
Carew,  his  keeper,  caught  him  by  the  sleeve,  and  a 
mock  struggle  ensued.  Sir  Walter  drew  his  dagger 
and  tore  Sir  George's  periwig  from  his  head  and  got 
his  own  arm  so  badly  wrenched  in  the  fray  that 
probably  he  was  disabled  for  a  time  from  writing 
any  more  passionate  tirades  to  the  Queen's 
secretary. 

In  the  September  of  that  year,  when  Raleigh  was 
still  in  the  Tower,  all  the  world  and  his  wife  in  Devon 
again  flocked  to  Dartmouth.  Sir  Walter's  good 
ship,  'Roebuck,'  from  which  he  had  been  so  sum- 

64 


The  Madre  de  Dios 

marily  recalled,  had  distinguished  herself  and  re- 
deemed the  whole  expedition  from  failure  by  captur- 
ing the  great  carrack  'Madre  de  Dios'  (Mother  of 
God),  which,  with  her  cargo  of  spices,  musk,  pepper, 
cloves,  cinnamon,  and  cochineal,  her  silken  and 
tapestry  hangings  and  precious  stones,  worth  40,000 
cruzadoes,  was  the  richest  prize  ever  brought  to 
England. 

The  sacred  name  of  the  gigantic  ship,  and  the 
almost  inconceivable   wealth   her   hold   contained, 
seized  the  popular  imagination,  and  the  excitement 
upon  her  arrival  in  an  English  harbour  knew  no 
bounds.     Before   even   she   was   towed   into   port, 
pilfering  began,  though  Sir  John  Borough  declared 
the  whole  cargo  Queen's  property,  to  touch  which 
was   treasonable.      The  Queen  sent  her  secretary. 
Sir  Robert  Cecil,  to  stop  the  pillage,  but  before  he 
reached  the  spot  some  of  the  sailors  had  crammed 
their    pockets    and    trunks    with    treasure.     One 
mariner    alone    of    Saltern    (Raleigh's    birthplace) 
brought  in  his  baggage  to  his  humble  home  'a  chain 
of  orient  pearls,  two  chains  of  gold,  four  great  pearls 
of  the  bigness  of  a  fair  pea,  four  forks  of  crystal,  four 
spoons  of  crystal  set  with  gold  and  stones,  and  two 
cords  of  musk."     The  ships'  crew  were  indignant 
when  they  heard  that  their  master,  Raleigh,  was  a 
prisoner  in  the  Tower,  and  it  was  difficult  to  keep 
them  in  hand.     Sir  John  Hawkins  then  sent  word 
that  *the  especial  man'  to  arrange  matters  was  Sir 
Walter,  and  leave  was  obtained  for  him  to  go  down 
to  Devonshire  'still  in  custody  as  the  Queen's  pris- 
oner in  charge  of  Mr  Blount." 

Some  of  the  'bags  of  seed  pearls  and  rubies' 

65 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

brought  home  by  the  *Madre  de  Dios'  had  found 
their  way  into  the  old  cathedral  city  of  Exeter,  and 
the  citizens  had  not  been  inclined  to  reveal  to  Sir 
Robert  Cecil  where  they  lay  hid.  'By  my  rough 
dealing/  wrote  the  Secretary,  'I  have  made  an 
impression  with  the  mayor  and  the  rest,  and  I  have 
given  orders  to  search  every  bag  and  mail  coming 
from  the  West,  for  jewels,  pearls  and  amber,  and 
though  I  fear  the  birds  be  flown  yet  will  I  not  doubt 
to  save  Her  Majesty  that  which  shall  be  worth  my 
journey.  Her  Majesty's  captive  comes  after  me, 
but  I  have  outrid  him  and  will  be  at  Dartmouth 
before  him.' 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  'the  Queen  of  England's  poor 
captive,'  as  he  called  himself  with  'a  pensive  air,' 
we  may  picture  riding  into  the  picturesque,  hilly, 
small  town  on  the  green  waters  of  the  Dart  with  a 
splendid  retinue.  When  he  so  willed  none  knew 
better  than  he  how  to  excite  the  enthusiasm  of  poor 
seamen,  though,  as  a  rule,  he  held,  like  Coriolanus, 
the  multitude  and  its  opinion  in  utter  scorn.  As 
the  sight  of  the  mighty  carrack  met  his  eyes,  tower- 
ing into  the  blue  sky  against  a  background  of  woods 
touched  with  the  crimson,  orange  and  brown  of  their 
early  autumn  glory,  a  light  must  have  leapt  up  in 
them;  and  as  the  eager,  sunburnt  faces  around  him 
next  caught  his  glance,  ambitious  dreams  and  hope 
would  wake  again  within  him,  chasing  away  depres- 
sion and  the  bitterness  of  disappointment.  These 
hardy  seamen  were  so  devoted  he  might  count  on 
them  surely  to  follow  him  whithersoever  he  led  them, 
over  unsailed  seas,  to  untrodden  shores,  by  the 
crystal  waters  of  the  vast  Orinoco,  through  virgin 

66 


The  Madre  de  Dios 

forests  to  the  mountains  of  glittering  quartz  and 
marble,  in  whose  heart,  according  to  Spanish  legend, 
lay  the  magic  region  of  El  Dorado,  Manoa  (the 
golden  city),  where  all  the  houses,  and  everything 
else,  were  of  pure  solid  gold  ?  If  he  found  this  foun- 
tain of  wealth,  richer  than  all  the  other  countries 
of  the  world  put  together,  if  he  added  this  to 
Elizabeths  dominions,  he  must  regain  his  old 
position  in  her  affection  and  be  forgiven  by  his 
sovereign  for  his  'brutish  offence,'  as  Cecil  termed 
his  marriage. 

Delusive  dream,  vain  vision,  that  as  the  years 
went  on  rose  again  and  again  to  lure  him  on  to  his 
ruin  and  lead  to  that  fall  the  story  of  which  is  one  of 
the  most  tragic  in  the  pages  of  history. 

Cecil  watched  that  memorable  scene  on  the  quay 
at  Dartmouth  and  then  went  into  the  inn  to  record 
it  in  his  correspondence.  *I  assure  you,  sir,'  he 
wrote  to  Heneage,  '  his  poor  servants,  to  the  number 
of  140  goodly  men,  and  all  the  mariners  came  to  him 
with  such  shouts  of  joy  as  I  never  saw  a  man  more 
troubled  to  quiet  them  in  my  life.  But  his  heart 
is  broken,  for  he  is  very  extreme  pensive.  .  .  .  The 
meeting  between  him  and  Sir  John  Gilbert  was  with 
tears  on  Sir  John's  part.  Whensoever  he  is  saluted 
with  congratulations  on  his  liberty  he  doth  answer, 
*'No,  I  am  still  the  Queen  of  England's  poor  cap- 
tive." I  wished  him  to  conceal  it,  because  here  it 
doth  diminish  his  credit,  which  I  do  vow  to  you  be- 
fore God  is  greater  amongst  the  mariners  than  I 
thought  for  I  do  grace  him  as  much  as  I  may,  for 
I  find  him  marvellously  greedy  to  do  anything  to 
recover  the  conceit  of  his  brutish  offence.' 

67 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

The  disputes  with  regard  to  the  distribution  of 
the  booty  from  the  *  Madre  de  Dios '  were  many  and 
not  easily  settled.  In  the  end  the  Queen  claimed 
and  received  the  biggest  share  for  herself,  for  avarice, 
that  most  disagreeable  trait  in  Elizabeth's  character, 
seemed  to  grow  rather  than  decrease  with  her  years. 
Raleigh,  to  whose  spirit  and  enterprise  the  whole 
affair  was  due,  did  not  come  off  very  handsomely, 
but  there  could  hardly  be  any  talk  of  his  returning 
to  his  prison  after  services  from  which  her  Majesty 
had  reaped  such  a  rich  harvest.  Instead,  he  took 
up  his  abode  again  at  Durham  House  with  Lady 
Raleigh,  and  concentrated  his  thoughts  on  better 
things  than  philandering. 


CHAPTER  X:   Sherborne  and 
Guiana 

DURING  the  years  that  he  was  not  wanted 
at  court,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  took  a  more 
active  part  in  Parliamentary  debates  than 
he  had  ever  been  at  liberty  to  do  before.  He  was  a 
very  remarkable  speaker, ^jidknew  how  to~useTS; 
BolJandl)lausibIe  tongug3o~^  NolnarT 

of^hrs-day,  it  was  said,  was  a  greater  master  of  elo- 
quence, and  his  speeches  were  full  of  close  and  clear 
argument  and  cool,  discriminating  judgment.  It  is 
curious  that  for  all  this  he  was  no  statesman.  Eliza- 
beth, with  her  unerring  insight  into  character  and 
power  of  summing  up  the  physical  and  mental  assets 
of  her  servants,  never  summoned  Raleigh  to  discuss 
with  her  the  secrets  of  State  or  swore  him  a  privy 
councillor. 

In  the  Parliament  of  1592-3  he  championed  the 
Puritans,  and  opposed  a  Bill  for  the  expulsion  of  a 
sect  called  Brownists.  But  he  was  in  favour  of  ex- 
peUing  'alien  retailers,'  for  it  would  appear  that  even 
as  early  as  Elizabethan  days  there  was  an  alien 
question.  A  large  company  of  Dutch  folks  had 
settled  in  the  city  near  St  Martin-le-Grand,  and 
carried  on  their  trade  of  weaving,  spinning  and  re- 
tailing of  textiles,  to  the  detriment,  it  was  alleged, 
of  the  regular  London  dealers,  *  inasmuch  as  three- 
score English  retailers  had  been  ruined  by  them  since 
last  Parliament.'  Raleigh  supported  a  Bill  to  make 
alien  retail  trading  illegal,  and  in  one  of  his  most  elo- 
quent speeches,  he  said,  'Whereas  it  is  pretended 
that  for  strangers  it  is  against  charity,  against  hon- 

69 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

our,  against  profit  to  expel  them,  in  my  opinion  it  is 
no  matter  of  charity  to  reheve  them.  For  first,  such 
as  fly  hither  do  so  forsaking  their  own  King,  and 
rehgion  is  no  pretext  for  them,  for  we  have  no  Dutch- 
men here  but  such  as  come  from  where  the  gospel  is 
preached.  Yet  here  they  live  disliking  our  Church. 
For  honour:  it  is  not  honour  to  use  strangers  as  we  be 
used  amongst  strangers,  and  it  is  lightness  to  a  com- 
monwealth— aye  a  baseness  in  a  nation — to  give 
liberty  to  another  nation  which  we  cannot  receive 
again.  And  for  profit:  they  are  all  of  the  house  of 
Almoigne  who  pay  nothing;  aye  eat  out  our  profits 
and  supplant  our  own  nation.  .  .  .  Therefore  I 
see  no  reason  that  such  respect  should  be  shown 
them,  and  to  conclude,  in  the  whole,  no  matter  of 
honour,  no  matter  of  charity,  no  profit  in  relieving 
them.' 

The  Bill  for  Disestablishing  the  Dutchmen  was 
carried  by  a  majority  of  162  against  82. 

It  was  probably  at  this  period,  too,  that  Raleigh 
frequented  'The  Mermaid,'  the  inn  where  those 
famous  convivial  meetings  of  Ben  Jonson,  Shake- 
speare, Christopher  Marlowe,  and  others  took  place. 
He  was  also  the  leading  light  of  a  society  which  en- 
couraged the  discussion  of  such  serious  questions  as 
life  and  death,  the  soul  and  the  existence  of  God. 
It  was  dubbed  by  the  ignorant '  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's 
School  of  Atheism.' 

*The  truth  is,'  said  a  contemporary,  *he  was  the 
first  who  ventured  to  tack  about  and  sail  aloof  from 
the  beaten  track  of  the  schools.'  Elizabeth  knew 
that  her  favourite,  on  account  of  his  religious  tolera- 
tion and  breadth  of  views,  had  been  branded  as  an 

70 


Sherborne  and  Guiana 

Atheist,  '  though  a  known  asserter  of  God  and  His 
providence/  and  had  *chid  him,'  saying  it  was 
*  against  her  father's  honour  no  less  than  a£?ainst 
God.' 

His   inquiring   mind,    no   doubt,    made   Raleigh 
curious  about  all  faiths  and  creeds,  and  it  is  related 
that  he  once  passed  a  whole  June  night  in  disputa- 
tion with  an  arrested  Jesuit.     The  fact,  too,  that  he 
had  enriched  himself  with  lands  belonging  to  the 
Church  increased  the  popular  suspicion  of  his  not 
being  orthodox.     Before  his  disgrace  he  had  ac- 
quired, by  a  piece  of  jobbery,  the  beautiful  estate  of 
/  Sherborne,  in  Dorsetshire,  the  lawful  property  of  the 
/    Bishop  of  Sarum.     Here,  for  the  most  part,   Sir 
/      Walter  and  his  lady  lived  for  tbe  next  ten  years; 
though  they  kept  up  a  stately  household  at  Durham 
House,  and  resided  therelhlnuch  magniJScehce  when" 
I      they  visited  London,  Sherborne  was  their  favourite/ 
'      and  dearest  home.     On  these  confiscated  estates 
Raleigh  had  once,  when  riding  to  London  with  his 
brother,  fallen  from  his  horse  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Sherborne,  and  had  been  so  charmed  with  the  sur- 
rounding  landscape   that   he   had    persuaded    the 
Queen  to  grant  him  the  lands  which  she  could  not  do 
without  taking  them  away  from  some  one  else;  a 
trifling  obstacle,  however,  and  one  easily  removed 
for  the  sake  of  pleasing  a  gallant  knight  who,  if  he 
had  fallen  from  his  horse  had  not  yet  fallen  from 
her  favour. 

At  Sherborne  Raleigh  had  built  himself  a  fair 
mansion,  and  laid  out  gardens  extending  over  many 
acres,  in  emulation  of  the  Cecils  at  Theobalds.  In 
his  years  of  retirement  he  spent  many  hours  there 

71 


Sir  JVa/ter  Raleigh 

with  the  flowers  and  plants  he  loved,  and  among  his 
books.  In  1594  his  little  son  '  Wat'  was  born  to  him. 
But  there  was  no  fear  of  Raleigh  settling  down 
contentedly  as  the  discarded  courtier  and  fallen 
favourite.  His  active  mind  was  too  full  of  vast 
dreams  and  many  projects  for  self -aggrandisement 
and  the  good  of  his  country.  There  were  occupa- 
tions which  often  took  him  away  from  Sherborne 
and  his  building  and  planting  there.  He  still  dis- 
charged his  duties  as  Lord  Warden  of  the  Stannaries 
on  Dartmoor,  and  had  plans  for  the  development  of 
his  Lismore  estates  and  the  better  government  of 
Ireland. 

The  richly  perfumed  yellow  wallflowers  that  he 
imported  from  the  Azores  into  Ireland,  and  a  certain 
cherry,  are  still  found  where  he  first  planted  them 
by  the  Blackwater,  and  some  cedars  that  he  brought 
to  Cork  are  also  growing  there  to  this  day.  Sir 
Robert  Cecil,  the  swarthy,  sinister-eyed  secretary, 
and  nephew  of  the  old  Lord  Treasurer  Burghley, 
whom  Essex  called  the  *old  fox,'  kept  up  a  regular 
correspondence  with  Raleigh,  and  was  presumably 
his  friend  at  court.  He  was  the  medium  of  repeated 
tentative  efforts  on  Sir  AValter's  part  to  recapture 
the  regard  of  his  Queen,  and  establish  himself  again 
in  her  good  graces. 

It  was  now  that  the  idea  of  the  first  voyage  to 
Guiana  took  definite  shape. 

*  Sir  Walter  having  tasted,'  wrote  a  contemporary, 
'abundantly  of  the  Queen's  love,  finding  it  now 
begin  to  decline,  resolved  to  undertake  an  expedition 
to  sea,  and  engaged  several  of  his  friends  of  great 
quality  to  be  concerned  with  him.' 

72 


Sherborne  and  Guiana 

This  new  venture  was  designed  to  be  the  most 
bold,  brilliant  and  successful  that  ever  was  at- 
tempted, and  to  put  anything  conceived  by  others, 
and  especially  by  my  Lord  of  Essex,  completely  in 
the  shade. 

The  preliminary  step  was  to  dispatch  in  1594 
a  vessel  commanded  by  an  old  captain  of  his,  Jacob 
Whiddon,  and  his  devoted  servant,  Kemys,  to  re- 
connoitre the  Orinoco.  Whiddon,  a  brave  old  sailor, 
with  a  simple,  childlike  nature,  came  home  at  the 
end  of  the  year  full  of  vague  reports  of  the  golden 
empire,  but  with  no  real  information  as  to  its  where- 
abouts. He  brought  home,  too,  some  red  Indians, 
whose  feathers  and  paint  made  a  great  impression  as 
they  flashed  through  the  London  streets. 

Raleigh,  with  his  face  set  determinedly  'towards 
the  sunset,'  now  came  into  residence  at  Durham 
House  to  keep  himself  in  the  public  eye  and  to 
attract,  by  means  of  lavish  display,  men  and  funds 
for  the  enterprise.  There  was  no  sign  of  his  being 
the  ruined  man  as  his  enemies  hoped.  He  wore  his 
gorgeous  clothes,  his  jewels  and  chains  of  pearls 
with  the  same  consummate  easy  grace  as  of  yore. 
He  stood  in  the  glory  of  his  adventurous  prime, 
a-thrill  with  unconquerable  eager  hopes  and  am- 
bition. His  feet  were  not  yet  set  on  the  dark, 
tortuous,  downward  paths  of  intrigue  and  reckless 
gambling  which  led  on  to  his  death. 

He  had  to  encounter  much  opposition  even  from 
his  gentle  wife,  who  trembled  at  his  going,  dreading 
that  this  voyage  in  search  of  a  golden  mirage  might 
break  up  for  ever  their  happy  domestic  life.  The 
letter  which  she  wrote  to  Cecil,  urging  him  to  try  and 

73 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

dissuade  her  husband  from  the  undertaking,  is  a 
delightful  example  of  a  wife's  anxiety  and  the  quaint 
erratic  spelling  of  the  time. 

*  Now  Sur,  for  the  rest, '  it  ends  up, '  I  hope  for  my 
sake  you  will  rather  draw  Sur  Water  towards  the 
est,  then  heulp  hyme  forward  toward  the  soonsett 
if  ani  respect  to  me  or  love  to  him  be  not  forgotten. 
But  everi  month  hath  it's  flower  and  everi  season 
it's  contentment,  and  you  greate  counselares  are 
so  full  of  new  councils  as  you  are  steddi  in  nothing, 
but  we"poore  soules  that  hath  bought  sorrow  at  a 
high  price  desiar  and  can  be  pleased  with  the  same 
misfortun  wee  hold,  fearing  alterations  will  but 
multiply  misiri  of  which  we  have  alredi  felt  sufficiant. 
.  .  .  Therefore  I  humbelle  beseech  you  rather 
stay  than  furder  him.  By  which  you  shall  bind  me 
for  ever.' 

It  would  have  taken  a  stronger  inducement  than 
love  of  wife  and  child  to  hold  Sir  Walter  back  from 
those  'soonsett'  lands  that  Lady  Raleigh  was  so 
unwilling  he  should  visit.  Tenderly  devoted  hus- 
band and  father  he  might  be,  but  he  was  not  the  man 
to  make  love  the  grand  business  of  his  life  and 
domesticity  his  fetish. 

His  imagination  was  too  strongly  fired  with  visions 
of  the  Empire  of  Guiana  and  his  engrossing  purpose 
of  annexing  it  to  his  sovereign's  domains.  He 
obtained  and  studied  all  the  Spanish  books  of  travel 
and  exploration  dealing  with  the  subject  of  Guiana, 
the  mysterious  region  of  reputed  wealth  beyond 
human  conception.  Thousands  of  voyagers,  ex- 
pedition after  expedition  had  started  and  sought  in 
vain  the  fabulous  city  of  glittering  gold,  on  the 

74 


Sherborne  and  Gtiiana 

shores  of  its  inland  sea.  They  had  fought  pestilence 
and  famine,  thirst,  weariness  and  heart-sickness,  and 
then  succumbed  without  catching  even  one  distant 
gleam  of  the  walls  of  El  Dorado.  Only  a  few 
stragglers  came  back  with  marvellous  stories,  which 
infected  others  with  the  fever — the  lust  for  conquest 
and  gold — and  more  explorers  were  sent  to  their 
doom.  In  1594  Guiana  was  still  awaiting  its  con- 
queror: for  it  was  characteristic  of  Raleigh  to  think 
that  it  was  reserved  for  him  to  set  foot  first  on  the 
virgin  soil  of  that  wondrous  country,  and  to  come 
back  with  such  riches  to  throw  into  the  lap  of  his 
Queen  that  her  displeasure  must  be  appeased  once 
and  for  ever. 

The  expedition  which  set  out  in  February  1595, 
under  Raleigh's  personal  command,  was  a  strong  one 
for  he  had  been  successful  in  enlisting  public  interest 
on  its  behalf,  and  able  recruits.  A  ship  was  lent 
by  the  Lord  High  Admiral,  money  came  from  vari- 
ous sources,  chiefly  from  the  Cecils,  and  many 
gentlemen  volunteered  their  services,  among  them 
*  my  nephew  John  Gilbert  and  my  cousin  Grenville. ' 
Raleigh  himself,  as  usual,  risked  his  entire  fortune 
recklessly  in  equipping  most  of  the  fleet  at  his  own 
cost. 

A  commission  had  been  wrung  from  the  Queen 
that  gave  him  authority  to  'offend  and  enfeeble'  the 
King  of  Spain,  to  discover  and  subdue  heathen 
lands  not  in  possession  of  any  Christian  prince  or 
inhabited  by  any  Christian  people,  and  to  resist 
and  expel  any  persons  who  should  attempt  to  settle 
within  200  leagues  of  the  place  that  he  fixed  upon  for 
settlement. 

75 


Sir  JVa/ter  Raleigh 

He  arrived  at  Trinidad  in  March  with  only  a 
small  bark  beside  his  own  ship,  and  coasted  about 
the  southwest  point  of  the  island,  but  was  unable  to 
get  in  touch  with  the  natives,  who  were  hiding  in 
fear  of  the  Spaniards.  Raleigh,  in  the  description 
of  his  voyage,  which  he  entitled  'The  Discoverie  of 
Guiana,'  speaks  of  oysters  growing  here  on  the 
mangrove  trees,  and  of  the  pitch  lake,  new  and 
wonderful  then,  but  now  familiar  enough  to  trav- 
ellers. His  missing  ships  joined  him  at  the  Port  of 
Spain,  and  from  the  shore  a  party  of  Spaniards  made 
amicable  signs,  so  that  Captain  Whiddon  landed  to 
parley  with  them.  They  were  afterward  invited  to 
supper  on  Raleigh's  ship,  and  given  a  lavish  amount 
of  wine,  with  the  idea  that  when  in  their  cups  they 
grew  merry  they  would  reveal  useful  information 
about  the  new  country. 

The  Spanish  guard  of  the  governor  of  Trinidad, 
however,  instead  of  being  thus  hospitably  enter- 
tained were  slaughtered,  and  the  governor,  one 
Berreo,  who  was  supposed  to  know  more  about 
El  Dorado  than  anyone  alive,  was  captured  and 
carried  off  by  Raleigh,  to  be  used  as  an  oracle  on  the 
expedition  up  the  Orinoco. 

The  exploring  party  left  the  ships  at  anchor  and 
embarked  in  a  galley,  one  barge,  two  wherries  and  a 
boat  belonging  to  one  of  the  ships,  the  'Lion's 
Whelp.'  They  carried  a  hundred  persons,  and 
victuals  for  a  month. 

'  We  were  all  driven  to  lie  in  the  rain  and  weather 
in  the  open  air,  in  the  burning  sun,  and  upon  hard 
boards,  and  to  dress  our  meat  and  to  carry  all 
manner  of  furniture,  wherewith  they  were  so  pes- 

76 


Sherborne  and  Guiana 

tered  and  unsavoury  that  what  with  victuals  being 
most  fish,  what  with  the  wet  clothes  of  so  many  men 
thrust  together,  and  the  heat  of  the  sun,  I  will 
undertake  to  lay  there  was  no  prison  in  England 
that  could  be  found  more  unsavoury  and  loathsome. ' 
So  wrote  Raleigh,  who  had  been  used  to  being 
'dieted  and  cared  for  in  a  sort  far  differing.'  Then 
follow  graphic  details  of  this  bootless  excursion  up 
the  vast  main  river.  The  Indians,  all  along  the 
coast,  we  are  told,  possessed  plates  and  crescents  of 
gold,  obtained  by  their  trading  with  Guiana's 
inhabitants,  and  the  English  explorers,  now  keen  to 
start  on  their  quest,  were  heartened  once  more  by 
the  oft-told  tales  of  men  who  daubed  their  naked 
bodies  with  gold  dust  in  their  carousals,  and  of 
wealth  compared  with  which  the  treasures  of  Peru 
faded  into  insignificance. 

Berreo,  the  ex-governor  of  Trinidad,  was  'stricken 
with  a  great  sadness  and  melancholy '  when  he  under- 
stood that  Raleigh  intended  taking  possession  of  the 
mythical  land  of  gold  and  annexing  it  to  the  Queen's 
dominions.  He  used  every  argument  to  dissuade 
him.  'He  assured  the  gentlemen  of  my  company 
that  it  would  be  labour  lost,  and  that  they  should 
suffer  many  miseries  if  they  proceeded. '  The  small 
rivers  were  full  of  shoals,  he  declared,  and  could  not 
be  entered,  the  Indians  would  not  come  near  the 
Enghsh,  but  would  run  away  from  them,  the  journey 
was  long,  the  winter  at  hand,  the  chiefs  on  the  out- 
skirts of  Guiana  would  permit  no  trade  in  gold 
with  Christians,  and  so  on.  But  Berreo  was  a  wet 
blanket  that  could  not  damp  Raleigh's  ardour,  and 
he  determined  to  go  on. 

77 


Sir  TFalter  Raleigh 

How  the  unheeded  warnings  of  the  oracle  proved 
more  or  less  right;  how  food  ran  short,  and  the  hot 
air  bred  faintness  among  the  weary  rowers;  how  they 
saw  gorgeous  tropical  birds  and  flowers,  and  luscious 
fruits,  with  eyes  too  tired  to  wonder,  and  rowed 
their  way  in  canoes  through  rivers  so  narrow  and 
vegetation  so  thick  that  they  had  to  cut  branches 
down  with  their  swords;  how  alligators  and  croco- 
diles swarmed  and  ate  up  Raleigh's  negro-boy — all 
this  and  much  more  must  be  read  in  Raleigh's  own 
vivid  accounts  of  his  adventures,  for  there  is  no 
space  in  which  to  do  the  story  justice  here. 

Though  the  explorers  never  came  near  sighting 
El  Dorado,  which  had  been  their  object,  they  had 
not  been  altogether  unsuccessful  when  they  returned 
home.  They  had  navigated  a  network  of  rivers, 
had  appeased  and  held  friendly  intercourse  with  the 
Indians,  and  discovered  silver  and  other  precious 
metals  in  abundance.  They  had  paved  the  way  for 
the  future  exploiting  of  a  fair  and  fertile  country, 
w^hich,  if  not  the  golden  land  itself,  was  something 
very  like  it. 

Yet  Raleigh,  after  his  seven  months'  absence, 
came  back  to  London  almost  empty-handed  instead 
of  loaded  with  wealth.  And  thus  he  failed  to  re- 
habilitate himself  in  the  eyes  of  his  enemies.  They 
scouted  the  stories  of  Guiana  and  were  sneeringly 
incredulous.  'Some  even  went  so  far  as  to  suggest 
that  Raleigh  had  not  been  there  at  all,  but  had  been 
hiding  in  Cornwall  all  the  time  that  his  faithful 
servants  were  fighting  against  thirst  and  famine  and 
fever  on  the  shores  of  the  Orinoco.  In  these  circum- 
stances it  was  not  easy  to  raise  the  capital  required 

78 


Sherborne  and  Guiana 

for  a  second  expedition,  especially  as  the  Queen, 
still  unmollified,  refused  to  contribute  a  penny  or  a 
ship  toward  it.  Nevertheless,  before  six  months 
had  passed.  Captain  Kemys  was  dispatched  on 
another  enterprise  to  Guiana.  He  was  too  crippled 
by  want  of  money  and  supplies  to  do  much  beyond 
deepening  the  favourable  impression  the  first  visit 
of  the  English  had  made  on  the  natives,  and  ascer- 
taining that  the  Spaniards  were  again  attempting  a 
settlement  there.  Kemys  was  wholly  animated, 
like  his  master,  by  the  colonizing  spirit,  and  on  his 
return  he  too  wrote  the  history  of  his  voyage,  and 
made  a  fervent  appeal  to  his  countrymen  not  to 
allow  Spanish  aggrandisement  but  to  forestall  them 
in  this  work. 

'I  can  discern  no  competent  impediment,'  wrote 
Kemys,  'but  that  with  a  sufficient  number  of  men 
Her  Majesty  may  and  her  successors  enjoy  this  rich 
and  great  empire,  and  having  once  planted  there, 
may  for  ever,  with  the  favour  of  God,  holde  and  keep 
it  contra  judoBos  et  Sentes,' 

But  for  the  present  Raleigh  was  full  of  another 
great  undertaking,  which  was  to  lead  to  more  per- 
sonal glory  than  his  first  voyage  to  Guiana. 


79 


CHAPTER  XI:  The  Sacking 
of  Cadiz 

THE  old  apprehensions  with  regard  to  Spain's 
designs  upon  England  were  rife  once  more 
when  Raleigh  returned  from  Guiana.  At 
this  moment  Calais  was  in  possession  of  the  Span- 
iards. The  last  attempts  of  Drake  and  Hawkins  on 
Panama  had  failed,  and  the  admirals  were  said  to 
have  died  broken-hearted  in  consequence.  Ireland 
was  seething  again  with  rebellion,  and  the  Earl  of 
Tyrone,  the  leader  of  the  insurrection,  was  reported 
to  be  getting  military  aid  from  Philip  and  planning 
an  attack  on  England.  Again  the  old  bugbears  of 
Spanish  supremacy  at  sea,  and  the  building  of  fresh 
armadas  in  the  ports  of  Spain,  were  giving  rise  to 
exaggerated  fears  and  rumours.  In  retaliation,  prep- 
arations were  being  made  for  an  English  expedition 
against  Spain,  of  which  Essex  was  to  be  the  moving 
spirit.  Raleigh  laid  down  the  pen  which  he  had 
taken  up  to  refute  the  slanders  against  him  by  writ- 
ing his  *  Discovery  of  the  large,  rich  and  beautiful 
Empire  of  Guiana,  with  a  relation  of  the  great  and 
golden  city  of  Manoa, '  and  gladly,  in  this  instance, 
joined  hands  with  his  rival. 

A  powerful  fleet  was  equipped  at  Plymouth,  con- 
sisting of  150  vessels  in  the  spring  of  1596.  Of  these 
the  Dutch  supplied  twenty-four;  the  Lord  High 
Admiral,  Howard  of  Effingham,  was  appointed 
supreme  commander  of  the  fleet;  and  Essex,  General 
of  the  land  forces.  Thousands  of  gentlemen  vol- 
unteered for  the  service,  but  it  was  harder  to  get 
ordinary  sailors,  and  Raleigh,  who  had  to  levy  men, 

80 


The  Sacking  of  Cadiz 

wrote  to  Cecil,  'As  fast  as  we  press  men  one  day, 
they  come  away  another  and  say  they  will  not  serve.' 
For  this  reason  he  was  late  in  joining  the  fleet  at 
Plymouth,  and  his  enemies  tried  to  make  capital  out 
of  the  delay. 

*Sir  Walter's  slackness  and  "  stay-by-the- way " 
is  not  thought  to  be  upon  sloth  and  negligence,' 
wrote  one,  *  but  upon  pregnant  design.  .    .    . ' 

He  arrived  on  the  21st  of  May,  after  having  hunted 
renegade  mariners  'from  ale-house  to  ale-house  and 
dragged  them  through  the  mire. '  Before  starting 
there  were  'open  jars'  between  Raleigh  and  Vere, 
who  commanded  the  'Rainbow.'  'Sir  Walter 
Raleigh's  carriage  to  my  Lord  of  Essex,'  some  one 
reported,  'is  with  the  cunningest  respect  and  deepest 
humility  that  ever  I  saw.' 

His  advice  that  England  should  not  be  constrained 
to  act  on  the  defensive  was  followed,  and  when,  on 
June  2nd,  the  fleet  at  last  set  sail,  it  boldly  made 
straight  for  Cadiz,  and  on  the  26th  anchored  half  a 
league  from  the  city,  which  w^as  the  richest  in  Spain. 
The  inhabitants  were  terror-struck,  as  they  had  no 
inkling  of  the  coming  of  the  English.  The  fortresses 
were  out  of  repair,  and  the  guns  so  old-fashioned  as 
to  be  almost  useless.  But  in  the  harbour  there  lay 
at  anchor  an  array  of  formidable  galleons,  with  their 
prows  directed  toward  the  coast — eleven  frigates  of 
war  and  forty  cargo  ships. 

Raleigh's  ship  was  detached  from  the  rest  of  the 
fleet  to  keep  watch  on  the  harbour  and  to  prevent 
the  escape  of  any  Spanish  vessel.  In  his  absence 
a  Council  of  War  was  held,  and  when  he  rejoined  the 
rest  he  found  that  a  resolution  had  been  passed  to 

81 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

attack  the  town  first,  and  that  Essex  was  in  the  act 
of  putting  soldiers  into  boats  on  a  stormy  sea.  One 
barge  had  already  sunk,  and  Raleigh  dissuaded  the 
Earl  from  the  perilous  and  foolhardy  idea  of  attack- 
ing the  town  before  settling  with  the  Spanish  fleet  in 
the  harbour.  His  own  plan  of  action  was  to  batter 
the  galleons  before  bombarding  the  town.  He  had 
to  obtain  the  Lord  High  Admiral's  authority  to 
countermand  the  first  order  issued,  and  went  to 
interview  him  on  his  ship.  As  he  passed  Essex,  on 
his  way  from  the  successful  interview,  he  shouted  the 
news  to  Essex  in  Spanish,  ^  Entramos!  Entramos! 
We  may  enter!'  and  the  Earl  showed  his  delight 
and  approval  by  flinging  his  plumed  cap  to  the  waves 
in  a  transport  of  boyish  excitement. 

Raleigh  led  the  van  in  the  'Warsprite,'  with  its 
crew  of  290  men.  He  started  well  in  advance  of  all 
the  other  ships,  much  to  the  disgust  of  their  captains. 
At  dawn  the  next  day,  which  was  Sunday,  the  great 
fight  began,  in  which  Raleigh  covered  himself  with 
glory.  The  *  War  sprite's'  entry  into  the  harbour  was 
greeted  by  a  thunderous  cannonading  from  the  forts 
and  the  galleys.  But  the  only  response  she  made 
was  a  contemptuous  blare  of  trumpets  to  each  dis- 
charge of  the  enemy's  guns.  Gaily  she  sailed  on, 
still  far  ahead,  though  frantic  efforts  were  made  by 
jealous  Sir  Francis  Vere  and  others  to  get  their  ships 
in  front  of  him.  Vere,  indeed,  covertly  tied  his 
*  Rainbow'  to  the  *Warsprite,'  but  the  ropes  were 
soon  cut  by  Raleigh's  orders.  Straight  before  him 
were  the  four  biggest  ships  in  the  Spanish  navy, 
foremost  among  them  the  gigantic  'St  Philip'  and 
*St  Andrew.'     These  last  had  overpowered  Gren- 

82 


The  Sacking  of  Cadiz 

ville's  little  'Revenge'  at  the  Azores  four  years 
earlier,  and  Raleigh,  holding  his  gallant  kinsman 
ever  in  affectionate  remembrance,  determined  to  be 
revenged  for  the  'Revenge,'  or  'to  second  her  with 
my  own  life. '  The  '  St  Philip '  was  blown  up  by  the 
despairing  crew,  and  the  'St  Andrew'  captured  and 
brought  to  England  with  the  '  St  Matthew. ' 

Raleigh,  in  his  account,  written  afterward,  says, 
'  The  spectacle  was  a  very  lamentable  one,  for  many 
drowned  themselves,  many  half-burnt  leapt  into 
the  water,  very  many  hanging  by  ropes'  ends  to 
the  ship's  side  under  water  even  to  the  lips;  many 
swimming  with  grievous  wounds,  stricken  under 
water,  and  put  out  of  their  pain,  and  withal  so 
huge  a  fire,  such  tearing  of  the  ordnance  of  the 
great  St.  Philip  .  .  .  indeed  if  any  man  had  a 
desire  to  see  hell  itself  it  was  there  most  lively 
figured. ' 

The  rout  of  the  Spaniards  was  complete,  and 
Raleigh,  with  a  splinter-torn  leg,  was  the  hero  of  the 
day.  Though  he  alone  had  planned  and  carried  out 
the  victory,  he  generously  gave  honour  to  others 
where  honour  was  due.  In  a  letter  to  Cecil  he 
wrote,  after  watching  the  sack  of  Cadiz  from  his 
litter:  'The  Earl  hath  behaved  himself.  I  protest 
to  you  by  the  living  God,  both  valiantly  and  ad- 
visedly in  the  highest  degree  without  pride,  without 
cruelty  and  have  gotten  great  honour  and  much 
love  of  all. ' 

When  the  city  had  capitulated,  on  June  20th, 
women  and  children  having  first  been  allowed  to 
flee  under  the  care  of  a  Jesuit  Father,  Zensada, 
Raleigh  was  carried  back  to  the  'Warsprite,'  his 

83 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

thoughts  now  centred  on  the  capture  of  the  rich 
Indian  fleet  in  the  harbour  of  Puerto  Real,  the  great 
prize  which  he  hoped  to  lay  at  the  feet  of  his  Queen, 
and  so  to  remove  the  last  vestige  of  her  resentment. 
However,  in  this  he  was  doomed  to  failure.  While 
disputing  about  a  ransom  which  the  merchants  of 
Seville  offered  for  the  fleet,  the  English  lost  their 
booty.  Medina  Sidonia,  the  same  old  admiral  w^ho 
had  proved  himself  anything  but  a  competent  com- 
mander in  1588,  became,  on  this  occasion,  energetic 
and  decisive  in  his  despair,  and  ordered  all  the 
Spanish  treasure-ships  to  be  burnt,  and  that  night 
galleons,  frigates,  argosies  and  emigrant  ships  blazed 
to  the  sky. 

The  division  of  the  spoils  of  Cadiz  caused  much 
ill-feeling  and  jealousy.  Raleigh  declared  that  he 
came  off  with  nothing  but  a  lame  leg  and  pain  and 
anguish,  yet  though  he  got  nothing  from  the  two 
galleons  which  he  brought  home,  he  seems  to  have 
been  apportioned  £1769  to  Vere's  £3628,  a  disparity 
that  increased  the  bitterness  between  them.  Essex 
was  all  for  giving  the  greater  share  of  the  plunder  to 
the  soldiers  in  preference  to  the  sailors,  for  he  had 
no  love  for  the  sea  and  its  calling. 

There  was  also  difference  of  opinion  among  the 
leaders  with  regard  to  the  holding  of  the  conquered 
city.  Finally  it  was  agreed  that  the  best  policy 
was  to  abandon  it,  and  on  the  5th  of  August  the  men 
re-embarked  and  left  Cadiz,  a  pile  of  ruins. 

Thus  ended  the  memorable  action  '  in  which, '  says 
an  eyewitness,  *the  King  of  Spain  never  received 
so  great  an  overthrow,  and  so  great  indignity  at 
our  hands,  for  our  attempt  was  at  his  home,  in  his 

84 


The  Sacking  of  Cadiz 

port  that  he  thought  as  safe  as  his  chamber,  where 
we  took  and  destroyed  his  ships  of  war,  burned 
and  consumed  the  wealth  of  his  merchants,  sacked 
his  city,  ransomed  his  subjects  and  entered  the 
country  without  impeachment. ' 

In  his  History  of  the  World,  Raleigh  describes 
Cadiz  as  one  of  the  three  keys  of  the  Spanish  Empire 
bequeathed  by  Charles  V  to  Philip. 

*We  stayed  not  to  pick  any  lock,'  he  says,  *but 
brake  open  the  doors  and,  having  rifled  all,  threw 
the  key  into  the  fire.' 

It  is  undoubted  that  the  galloping  decline  of  Spain 
dates  from  the  day  Raleigh  in  the  'Warsprite' 
marshalled  the  way  into  Cadiz  Harbour  with  a 
fanfare  of  trumpets.  Drake,  when  he  had  sailed 
up  to  Cadiz  in  1587,  had  merely  'singed  the  King  of 
Spain's  beard,'  and  it  was  only  the  audacity  of  the 
action  which  had  amazed  and  infuriated  his  Majesty. 
There  had  been  no  talk  of  landing,  and  it  was  simply 
regarded  as  an  astounding  naval  coup  de  main. 
But  this  sacking  of  Cadiz  in  1596,  without  a  check, 
the  destruction  of  the  finest  ships  of  Spain  and  of 
forty  laden  Indian  carracks,  was  a  serious  affair, 
calculated  to  bring  the  aged  and  embittered  Spanish 
monarch  to  his  grave.  It  wrung  from  even  Raleigh's 
enemies  admiration  and  warm  words  of  praise. 

*Sir  W.  Raleigh  did  in  my  judgement  no  man  bet- 
ter,' testified  Sir  Arthur  Standen,  a  follower  of 
Essex.  *I  never  knew  that  gentleman  till  this 
time,  there  are  in  him  excellent  things  besides  his 
valour.' 

So  friends  and  enemies  joined  their  voices  in 
appreciation  of  Raleigh's  heroic  achievement.     The 

85 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

Queen  alone  still  held  aloof,  though  she  was  rapidly 
softening  toward  her  fallen  favourite.  She  was 
indignant  that  the  spoils  of  the  expedition  were  not 
greater,  and  went  so  far  as  to  abuse  her  trusted 
minister,  Burghley,  for  pleading  the  right  of  Essex 
to  reap  profits  from  his  own  prisoners.  Elizabeth's 
thwarted  avarice  blinded  her  to  the  distinguished 
services  which  had  been  rendered  her  and  the  coun- 
try at  Cadiz.  At  first  she  received  Essex  with  open 
arms,  but  the  question  of  booty  soon  led  to  quarrels 
between  them,  and  then  she  turned  once  more  to 
Raleigh  and  received  him  graciously  in  May  1597, 
just  nine  months  after  his  return  from  Spain. 
Again  he  donned  his  splendid  silver  armour  and,  as 
Captain  of  the  Guard,  rode  out  on  a  June  evening 
at  her  Majesty's  side,  engaged  in  confidential  con- 
verse as  of  old. 

His  four  years'  banishment  from  court  were  over, 
and  the  estrangement  as  if  it  had  never  been. 


86 


CHAPTER  XII:    The  Island 

Voyage 

AFTER  his  restoration  to  favour,  Raleigh's 
friendship  with  Robert  Cecil,  the  Secretary 
of  State,  seemed  to  increase  rapidly.  Cecil's 
little  son  was  sent  to  Sherborne  to  be  the  playmate 
of  young  Walter  Raleigh  and  to  share  his  studies. 
On  the  death  of  Cecil's  wife,  in  1597,  Sir  Walter 
wrote  his  friend  a  very  beautiful  letter  of  tender 
sympathy,  signing  himself,  *  Yours  ever  beyond  the 
power  of  words  to  utter, — W.  Raleigh.' 

Curiously  enough,  Essex,  who  had  furiously  re- 
sented Cecil  being  appointed  Secretary  of  State 
in  preference  to  Sir  Thomas  Bodley,  whom  he  had 
recommended  for  the  post  to  the  Queen,  was,  at  this 
time,  on  excellent  terms  with  both  Cecil  and  Raleigh. 
The  three  were  intimate  together.  'Often  goes 
the  Earl,'  wrote  a  contemporary,  'to  Sir  Robert 
Cecil's  house,  very  private  where  they  all  meet,' 
and,  later,  the  same  writer  asserted,  'none  but  Cecil 
and  Raleigh  enjoy  the  Earl  of  Essex,  they  carry  him 
away,  as  they  list.' 

Robert  Cecil,  his  father's  own  son,  a  courtier  from 
the  cradle,  to  whom  was  attributed  one  of  the '  rarest 
and  most  excellent  wits  in  England,'  was  pledged 
to  that  policy  of  moderation  which  for  forty  years 
had  stood  Elizabeth  in  such  good  stead.  Essex, 
on  the  other  hand,  was  perpetually  advocating  a 
policy  of  aggression  toward  Spain,  and  his  tur- 
bulence often  alarmed  and  angered  the  Queen. 
What  motive  Cecil  had  now  in  turning  round  and 
stirring  up  Essex  in  his  belligerent  schemes,  no  one 

87 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

could  guess.  One  thing  was  certain.  It  was  not 
done  for  love  of  the  warHke  Earl  or  to  his  ultimate 
advantage.  Probably  the  secretary's  object  in  en- 
couraging Essex  to  embark  on  fresh  and  daring 
adventures,  which  involved  her  Majesty  in  heavy 
expenditure  and  brought  her  small  gain,  was  in 
some  dark,  mysterious  way  for  the  sole  benefit  of 
Robert  Cecil. 

The  friendly  relations  between  Raleigh  and  Essex 
after  the  victory  of  Cadiz  were  sustained  by  tidings 
coming  to  England  of  Spain's  meditated  revenge. 
Philip,  it  was  said,  had  got  another  fleet  ready  to 
sail  at  Ferrol.  The  two  temporarily  reconciled 
rivals  were  all  eagerness  to  strike  another  blow 
against  Spain  in  her  own  dominions.  No  one  knew 
better  than  Cecil  that  the  talk  of  an  avenging  Span- 
ish Armada  was  merely  braggadocio;  that  Philip  was 
powerless  to  do  anything  more  formidable  than 
supply  the  Irish  with  totally  inadequate  help. 
Everything  was  in  hopeless  confusion  at  Ferrol  and 
Corunna.  The  Spaniards  were  bankrupt,  without 
money,  men  or  armaments.  There  was  no  real 
danger  to  England  now  from  the  impotent  King  of 
Spain,  but  rumour  and  public  opinion  said  other- 
wise. So  a  fleet  of  150  sailing  vessels,  with  5000 
soldiers  on  board,  sailed  from  Plymouth  on  the 
19th  of  July.  The  command  was  given  to  Es- 
sex, and  Raleigh  was  his  vice-admiral.  Tempestu- 
ous weather  at  the  outset  compelled  the  ships 
to  put  back  into  harbour,  to  the  desperation  of 
Essex. 

"I  do  constantly  believe,'  wrote  Raleigh  to  Cecil, 
that  either  my  Lord  General  will  wrestle  with  the 

88 


The  Island  Voyage 

seas  to  his  peril  or  if  constrained  to  come  back  will 
be  found  utterly  heart-broken.' 

Provisions  ran  short  and  fever  broke  out  among 
the  crews.  Essex  and  Raleigh  rode  post-haste  back 
to  London,  and  the  former  implored  the  Queen  to 
allow  him  to  put  to  sea  again  directly  his  ships  were 
in  order  and  tlie  wind  in  the  right  quarter.  The 
season  was  so  advanced,  and  the  enemy  said  to  be 
preparing,  that  the  Queen  objected  to  her  ships  and 
men  being  exposed  to  such  risks  as  the  expedition 
would  now  entail. 

After  much  persuasion  she  gave  her  consent  to 
fire-ships  being  sent  into  the  harbour  of  Ferrol  to 
burn  the  Spanish  fleet,  but  would  permit  no  en- 
gagement on  land.  The  troops  were  to  be  left  be- 
hind, and  Essex  was  made  to  promise  that  he  would 
take  no  personal  part  in  the  operations.  The  dan- 
gerous business  was  to  be  entrusted  to  Raleigh. 

When  at  last  the  fleet  set  sail  once  more,  on  August 
17th,  without  the  troops,  it  was  caught  in  another 
great  storm  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay.  Raleigh's  ship, 
the  *Warsprite,'  broke  her  main  yard-arm  and  was 
separated  from  the  rest  of  the  fleet.  He  only  man- 
aged to  come  up  with  it  again  when  the  islands  were 
reached,  and  his  enemies  were  not  slow  to  represent 
to  Essex  that  he  had  wilfully  deserted,  and  the  im- 
pulsive Earl  sent  home  a  complaint  forthwith  of 
Raleigh's  conduct.  To  do  him  justice,  he  afterward 
apologized  frankly,  and  confessed  to  Raleigh  that 
he  had  been  'taxed  secretly  with  strange  reports' 
arising  'from  the  cankered  and  scandalous  disposi- 
tion of  those  who  made  them.'  He  showed  Raleigh 
much  cordiality  when  the  fleet  was  reunited  off 

89 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

Flores,  and  sought  his  society.  But  all  too  soon 
his  good  humour  evaporated,  the  next  escapade  of 
his  rear-admiral  putting  him  in  high  dudgeon. 

It  had  been  agreed  that  the  two  were  to  make  a 
joint  attack  on  the  Island  of  Fayall.  Raleigh, 
however,  on  arriving  there,  could  see  nothing  of 
Essex,  and  finding  himself  first  at  the  rendezvous, 
and  being  fired  on  by  soldiers  who  lined  the  beach 
to  dispute  his  landing,  he  was  naturally  impatient 
to  begin  operations.  For  four  days  he  waited, 
restraining  the  eagerness  of  his  men  and  watching 
Fay  all's  preparations  for  defence,  and  being  dared 
by  the  enemy  to  come  on  and  attack,  till  at  last 
he  could  contain  himself  no  longer.  He  pushed 
forward  to  the  shore,  followed  by  260  men,  leaving 
the  Dutch  contingent  behind  to  receive  their  orders 
from  the  Commander-in-Chief. 

As  they  came  to  the  beach  they  were  fired  on, 
so  hotly  that  the  men  flinched  at  landing.  Raleigh 
rebuked  them  with  *  reproachful  words,'  and  had  his 
own  boat  rowed  on  to  the  rocky  beach.  Breast-high 
in  the  surf  he  led  the  attack  on  the  trenches,  clamber- 
ing over  rocks,  with  no  armour  but  his  gorget  and 
helmet.  Panic-stricken,  the  defenders  fled,  throw- 
ing away  their  weapons.  Some  of  Raleigh's  men 
were  killed,  but  he  now  drew  reinforcements  from 
the  ships  and  enlisted  the  services  of  the  Dutch. 
He  led  the  party  full  in  face  of  the  fort,  which  gave 
them  a  warm  reception,  but  its  defenders  soon  aban- 
doned it  for  another  perched  on  a  high  craggy  hill. 
Raleigh  found  nearly  all  his  men  unwilling  to  recon- 
noitre this  eminence,  and  in  disgust  undertook  to  do 
it   himself,   alone   and   unaided.     His   cousin.    Sir 


'BREAST-IIIGII    IN   THE    SURF   HE    LED  THE   ATTA(^K'    • 

— Pagt'  do 


The  Island  Voyage 

Arthur  Gorges,  and  ten  of  his  personal  friends, 
followed  him.  Two  lost  their  lives.  Gorges  was 
wounded  in  the  leg,  and  Raleigh's  clothes  were 
pierced  with  bullets.  'They  phed  us  so  fast  with 
small  shot,'  recorded  Gorges,  'that  I  well  remember 
he  wished  me  to  put  off  a  large  red  scarf  which  I  then 
wore,  being,  as  he  said,  a  very  fair  mark  for  them. 
But  I  not  being  willing  to  do  the  Spaniards  so  much 
honour,  though  I  could  have  wished  it  had  not  been 
on,  answered  the  rear-admiral  again  that  his  white 
scarf  was  as  eminent  as  my  red,  and  therefore  I 
would  now  follow  his  example.' 

Before  a  systematic  attack  on  the  fort  could  be 
begun  it  was  deserted  by  the  garrison,  and  the  whole 
island  was  in  Raleigh's  possession.  Essex  arrived 
the  next  day  with  his  fleet,  and  found  the  work 
done. 

The  Lord  General  was  furious  at  having  had  no 
hand  in  the  glorious  achievement  of  taking  Fayall. 
Some  of  his  'cankered  and  scandalous'  advisers 
went  so  far  as  to  talk  of  a  court  martial,  and  of 
Raleigh  deserving  to  lose  his  head.  He  was  charged 
with  'a  breach  of  order  and  the  articles'  in  landing 
on  the  island  in  the  absence  of  his  superior  in  com- 
mand. Raleigh  defended  himself  with  dignity  and 
coolness.  He  took  all  the  blame  on  himself  and 
exonerated  his  companions.  Essex  calmed  down 
sufficiently  to  go  ashore  to  visit  Raleigh  in  his 
lodgings.  Sir  Walter  invited  the  Earl  to  sup  with 
him,  and  took  care  to  explain  that  should  the  invita- 
tion be  accepted  he  claimed  no  privilege  or  favour 
if  he  wished  to  call  him  to  further  account.  Sir 
Christopher   Blount,    who   was   in   attendance   on 

91 


Sir  JVa/ter  Raleigh 

Essex,  had  the  effrontery  to  reply  for  him  that 
he  thought  *  my  lord  would  not  sup  at  all.'  Where- 
upon Raleigh  crushingly  retorted  to  the  effect  that 
as  for  'Sir  Christopher's  own  appetite  he  might 
(when  he  was  invited)  disable  it  at  his  own  pleasure. 
But  if  the  Earl  would  stay  he  would  be  glad  of  his 
company.' 

While  these  events  were  passing  at  the  Azores, 
the  Spaniards  had  succeeded  in  getting  together 
an  Armada  of  a  sort  and  had  sailed  for  Ireland, 
only  to  be  driven  back  by  a  storm  to  the  coast  of 
Spain.  The  English  fleet  got  home  without  further 
adventure  beyond  the  capture  of  three  caracks  from 
Brazil.  Essex  was  received  by  his  sovereign  at  first 
with  an  outburst  of  fury,  but  the  fascination  of  his 
presence  soon  pacified  her  again,  though  the  favour- 
ite recognized  to  his  chagrin  that  during  his  absence 
he  had  lost  much  of  his  influence  at  court.  Lord 
Howard  of  EflBngham  had  been  created  Earl  of 
Nottingham  in  recognition  of  his  services  at  Cadiz, 
and  so  took  precedence  of  the  Commander-in-Chief 
by  virtue  of  his  new  patent  combined  with  his  rank 
as  Lord  High  Admiral. 

The  young  Earl  was  so  nettled  at  this  that  he 
became  more  overbearing  and  arrogant  than  ever. 
He  challenged  the  Lord  Admiral  to  fight,  insulted 
his  sons  and  feigned  illness  to  deprive  the  Queen  of 
his  society.  It  was  Raleigh  who  acted  the  part  of 
peacemaker,  and  it  was  at  his  instigation  that 
Essex  was  made  Earl  Marshal  of  England,  and,  after 
sulking  in  his  tent,  returned  to  court.  He  was  in  a 
mood  to  quarrel  with  anyone,  and  the  box  on  the 
ear  which  the  exasperated  Queen  administered  to 

92 


The  Island  Voyage 

him  one  day  when  his  rudeness  had  provoked  her 
beyond  endurance  was  the  beginning  of  the  end. 
Essex's  debacle  was  not  far  off.  His  petty  jealousy 
of  Raleigh  was  displayed  at  this  time  in  what  was 
called  his  'Feather  Triumph.'  Having  heard  that 
Raleigh  was  to  appear  at  a  tourney  at  Whitehall  on 
the  Queen's  birthday,  with  his  men  flaunting  orange- 
tawny  plumes  in  their  caps  and  wearing  orange- 
tawny  favours,  Essex  provided  himself  and  his  vast 
train  with  feathers  and  favours  exactly  similar  in 
colour  '  to  brave  the  knight,  or  to  confound  his  suite 
with  his  own.' 

Elizabeth  had  welcomed  Raleigh  after  his  exploits 
at  Fayall  with  every  mark  of  approval,  and  the 
crowd  who  made  an  idol  of  Essex  and  had  never 
cared  for  Raleigh  hated  him  more  than  ever  for 
having,  as  it  were,  ousted  the  popular  Earl  from  his 
position  as  pet  of  the  Queen.  Still  suffering  from 
the  splinter  wound  in  his  leg.  Sir  Walter  was  glad 
to  get  away  to  nurse  it  for  a  time  at  Bath.  He  then 
went  to  his  dear  home  at  Sherborne  for  a  long  period 
of  peace  and  rest,  and  temporarily,  at  any  rate,  the 
antagonism  between  the  two  great  rivals  was  in 
abeyance. 


93 


CHAPTER  XIII:  Fall  of 

Essex 

THE  dark  tragedy  of  the  once  gay  young 
favourite's  fate  fills  the  stage  from  1598  to 
1601,  when  one  February  day  Essex  paid  the 
penalty  for  his  headstrong  rashness  and  folly  by  death 
on  the  scaffold.  From  his  busy  life,  Raleigh  (now 
Governor  of  Jersey  in  addition  to  his  other  offices) 
snatched  time  to  play  a  minor  though  sinister  part  in 
the  events  which  led  up  to  the  execution  of  his  rival. 

The  success  of  Tyrone's  rebellion  made  the  con- 
dition of  Ireland  the  burning  question  of  the  day. 
In  consideration  of  the  grave  reverses  the  English 
intruders  had  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  rebels, 
and  the  relations  of  intimacy  existing  between  them 
and  Spain,  vigorous  and  coercive  measures  were  said 
to  be  absolutely  necessary.  It  was  first  proposed 
that  Raleigh  himself  should  go  to  Ireland  as  Lord 
Deputy  to  suppress  discontent  with  an  iron  hand, 
but  he '  little  liked'  the  suggestion,  and  finally  the  su- 
preme command  of  Irish  affairs  was  offered  to  Essex. 

Naturally  the  Earl  was  unwilling  to  leave  the  field 
of  court  intrigues  clear  for  the  manoeuvres  of  Raleigh 
and  Cecil,  yet  his  restlessness  and  desire  to  make 
a  new  bid  for  fame  prompted  him  to  accept  the 
position  of  power,  and  in  April  1599  he  went  to  take 
up  his  rule  in  Ireland.  Almost  directly  he  seems  to 
have  wildly  regretted  the  step  he  had  taken. 

*From  a  mind  delighting  in  sorrow,'  he  wrote  to 
the  Queen,  *from  spirits  wasted  with  passion,  from 
a  heart  torn  in  pieces  with  care  and  travail — what 
service  can  your  Majesty  expect,  since  any  past 
service  deserves  no  more  than  banishment  and  pro- 

94 


Fall  of  Essex 

scription  to  the  cursedest  of  islands?'  And  later  he 
complained,  *From  England  I  receive  nothing  but 
discomforts  and  soul's  wounds  .  .  .'  and  he  goes 
on  to  impute  to  Cecil,  Raleigh  and  Raleigh's  new 
friend,  Cobham,  a  wish  (that  they  never  harboured) 
that  Tyrone  should  triumph.  It  was  Essex  himself, 
who  after  six  months'  ineffectual  attempt  at  crushing 
the  rebellion,  made  a  truce  with  the  Irish  leader; 
and  Sir  Christopher  Blount,  who  lost  his  head  for 
being  concerned  in  Essex's  conspiracy,  gave  evidence 
at  his  trial  of  Essex  having  been  only  dissuaded  by 
himself  from  raising  the  standard  of  revolt  in  Ireland 
at  the  head  of  4000  soldiers  of  the  Queen.  After 
appointing  the  Earl  of  Southampton,  his  own  par- 
ticular friend,  to  an  important  command,  in  defiance 
of  the  Queen's  express  wishes,  he  took  the  still  more 
fatal  step  of  suddenly,  without  her  leave,  rushing 
over  to  England  and  arriving  at  her  palace  of  Non- 
such in  a  dusty,  travel-stained  condition. 

He  forced  his  way  into  her  chamber,  and  was 
guilty  of  the  cardinal  crime  of  finding  the  Queen  in  a 
not  prearranged  deshabille.  Here  comes  in  the 
story  (disallowed,  like  the  story  of  Raleigh  spreading 
the  cloak,  by  conscientious  historians)  of  false 
tresses  lying  about  on  the  dressing-table  and  the 
Earl's  unconcealed  contempt  thereof.  Such  blun- 
dering disobedience  was  never  to  be  pardoned. 
That  night  Essex  was  practically  arrested  and  his 
ruin  assured.  There  were  two  factions  at  court,  one 
in  support  of  the  Earl,  and  the  other  (in  whose  ranks 
was  Raleigh)  eager  to  hurry  him  to  his  doom.  The 
people  in  London  and  the  provinces  were  on  the  side 
of  the  popular  young  hero  whose  many  engaging  quali- 

95 


V 


Sir  W^alter  Raleigh 

ties  had  won  their  hearts  fromthe  first.  And  officers 
who  had  fought  under  him  in  Ireland,  came  over  in 
large  numbers  to  stand  by  him  in  his  time  of  trial. 

His  personal  friends — Mount  joy,  Southampton 
and  Blount,  the  Earl  of  Worcester  and  Rutland — 
were  ready  to  give  their  lives  for  him.  He  posed  in 
the  eyes  of  the  populace  as  the  victim  of  Raleigh 
and  his  party's  jealousy  and  malicious  spite,  but  he 
attributed  none  of  his  misfortunes  to  his  own  folly. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  Raleigh  had  every  reason  to 
wish  Essex  out  of  the  way.  He  was  plotting  treason 
against  the  State  (having  been  once  more  released), 
and  his  triumph  would  have  involved  Raleigh's  ruin. 
It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  he  should  have 
expressed  himself  as  strongly  as  he  did  in  the  follow- 
ing letter  to  the  Queen's  secretary: 

*I  am  not  wise  enough  to  give  you  advice;  but 
if  you  take  it  for  good  council  to  relent  towards  this 
tyrant,  you  will  repent  it  when  it  shall  be  too  late. 
His  malice  is  fixed  and  will  not  evaporate  by  any  of 
your  mild  courses.  For  he  will  ascribe  the  altera- 
tion to  Her  Majesty's  pusillanimity  and  not  to  your 
good  nature;  knowing  that  you  work  but  upon  her 
humour  and  not  out  of  any  love  towards  him.  The 
less  you  make  him,  the  less  he  shall  be  able  to  harm 
you  and  yours.  And  unless  Her  Majesty's  face 
favour  him,  he  will  again  decline  to  a  common  per- 
son. .  .  .  Look  to  the  present  and  you  do  wisely. 
His  son  shall  be  the  youngest  Earl  of  England  but 
one,  and  if  his  father  be  kept  down  well,  Cecil  shall 
be  able  to  keep  as  many  men  at  his  heels  as  he  and 
more  too.  .  .  .  But  if  the  father  continue  he  will 
be  able  to  break  the  branches  and  pull  up  the  tree 


Fall  of  Essex 

root  and  all.     Lose  not  your  advantage;  if  you  do 
I  read  your  destiny. — Yours  to  the  end.— W.  R.' 

But  though  his  protesting  against  leniency  toward 
Essex  may  be  natural,  Raleigh's  admirers  would  like 
to  think  of  him  as  having  displayed  more  generosity 
to  an  enemy.  During  the  Fayall  dispute,  when 
Essex  was  urged  by  his  advisers  to  bring  Raleigh 
before  a  court  martial  for  insubordination,  the  Earl 
replied,  chivalrously,  *If  he  had  been  my  friend,  I 
would  have  done  so.'  He  thus  showed  that  he  rec- 
ognized a  code  of  honour  in  dealing  with  enemies 
more  stringent  than  that  demanded  by  the  claims 
of  friendship.  Not  so  Raleigh,  who  now  could  not 
conceal  his  eagerness  to  hasten  the  undoing  of  his 
popular  rival.^  Yet,  before  condemning  him,  we  must 
consider  the  circumstances,  and  admit  that  there  was 
ample  cause  for  his  apparently  vindictive  attitude. 
Essex's  recovery  of  power  and  position,  as  has 
been  said  before,  would  mean  ruin,  if  not  death, 
to  Raleigh  and  his  friends. 

In  his  letters  to  Elizabeth  from  Ireland  he  had 
abused  them  in  no  measured  language.  He  had 
also  been  writing  to  the  future  king  of  England, 
James  of  Scotland,  tales  of  Raleigh  and  Cobham 
favouring  the  aspirations  of  Philip's  daughter,  the 
Infanta  of  Spain,  to  Elizabeth's  throne,  an  altogether 
groundless  charge.  In  every  way  he  could,  Essex 
had  striven  to  damage  the  reputation  of  Raleigh, 
Cecil  and  Cobham,  and  make  mischief  at  court. 
His  hostility  was  bitter  and  implacable  toward  them, 
and  they  had  everything  to  fear  from  any  renewal 
of  his  ascendancy  over  the  Queen. 

And  it  was  not  a  case  of  Raleigh  kicking  a  man 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

when  he  was  down.  Essex,  even  if  disgraced,  had  a 
powerful  following,  and  was  the  favourite  of  the  mob 
who,  however,  were  to  desert  him  at  the  crucial 
moment  of  insurrection. 

On  the  7th  of  February  the  Earl's  friends  met  at 
Essex  House,  where,  after  pretending  to  be  ill  in  the 
country  to  excite  the  pity  of  the  Queen,  he  had 
returned  and  given  sumptuous  entertainments  to 
his  followers.  He  had  been  winning  over  the 
Puritans  to  his  side  by  denunciations  of  Spain  and 
the  Catholics,  and  now  the  hour  seemed  ripe  for 
carrying  out  his  absurd  plot  of  seizing  Whitehall 
and  compelling  the  Queen  to  dismiss  Raleigh,  Cecil 
and  the  rest  of  her  advisers,  and  summon  Parliament 
and  settle  the  vexed  question  of  the  succession  once 
for  all.  Spies  got  wind  of  the  plan,  and  the  Palace 
guards  were  doubled.  The  following  Sunday  morn- 
ing 300  gentlemen  were  to  ride  through  the  city 
stirring  up  the  citizens  by  loudly  proclaiming  the 
Earl's  grievances  and  what  he  had  suffered  from 
Raleigh,  about  whom  the  public  was  always  ready 
to  credit  any  calumny.  Just  before  they  started, 
Raleigh  sent  a  message  to  Sir  Ferdinand  Gorges,  one 
of  the  conspirators  and  a  cousin  of  his  own,  asking 
him  to  come  and  see  him  at  Durham  House.  Gorges 
was  given  leave  by  Essex  to  go,  on  condition  that, 
instead  of  entering  the  house,  he  was  interviewed  by 
the  Captain  of  the  Guard  on  the  river.  Raleigh 
rowed  out  to  meet  Gorges,  alone  in  his  boat,  as  usual 
careless  of  his  own  safety.  He  advised  his  cousin 
to  escape  to  Plymouth  as  a  warrant  was  out  for  his 
arrest.  Gorges  said  it  was  too  late,  for  he  had  com- 
mitted himself  with  2000  '  other  gentlemen  who  had 

98 


Fall  of  Essex 

resolved  that  day  to  live  or  die  free  men. '  Another 
of  the  conspirators,  Sir  Christopher  Blount,  had 
advised  Gorges  to  take  advantage  of  the  interview 
by  killing  Raleigh.  Gorges  refused,  but  Blount, 
watching,  with  four  armed  men,  from  a  little  distance 
what  passed  on  the  river,  sent  musket  shots  at 
Raleigh's  retreating  figure  as  he  rowed  back  to 
Durham  House,  after  severely  admonishing  Gorges 
and  reminding  him  of  his  duty  of  allegiance. 

The  desperate  Earl,  a  little  later,  rode  beyond 
Temple  Bar  with  his  train  of  200  gentlemen,  calling 
out  that  Raleigh  had  laid  an  ambuscade  for  him 
and  his  life  was  in  jeopardy.  The  citizens  stopped 
on  their  way  to  church  and  stared  at  him,  but  not 
one  showed  any  inclination  to  do  more  than  listen. 
Much  as  they  might  have  sympathized  with  a 
brilliant,  generous  young  favourite  in  disgrace,  they 
were  not  now  disposed  to  take  up  arms  against  the 
State  on  his  behalf  for  the  sake  of  a  private  griev- 
ance. Essex  saw  that  he  had  made  a  false  move 
when  a  voice  in  the  crowd  murmured 'Treason, 'and 
he  turned  his  horse's  head  back  in  the  direction  of 
the  river,  flung  himself  into  a  boat  and  rowed  to 
Essex  House.  He  found  it  besieged,  and  threw  up 
the  game.  Ten  days  afterward  he  was  tried  and 
condemned  for  high  treason.  On  Ash  Wednesday 
Essex  was  executed  at  the  Tower,  Raleigh  being 
present  on  duty  as  Captain  of  the  Guard,  as  he  had 
been  in  the  same  capacity  present  at  the  trial. 

Thinking  that  the  doomed  man  might  wish  to 
speak  with  him  and  ask  his  forgiveness,  Raleigh  took 
up  a  position  near  the  scaffold.  This  was  misinter- 
preted by  the  mob,  who  hated  and  detested  Raleigh 

99 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

as  much  as  it  still  worshipped  the  fallen  idol,  as  a 
wish  to  exult  over  the  fate  of  his  enemy.  When 
Raleigh  heard  the  murmurings  of  the  crowd  to  this 
effect,  he  retired  to  a  distant  window  of  the  armoury 
where  he  witnessed  the  last  terrible  scene,  with  tears 
pouring  down  his  cheeks. 

Years  and  years  afterward,  when  he  too  stood 
on  the  scaffold  to  meet  the  same  end,  Raleigh  refuted 
the  slander  that  he  had  gloated  over  the  death  of 
Essex.  'True  it  was,'  he  said,  *that  I  was  of  the 
contrary  faction,  but  I  bare  him  no  ill  affection,  and 
always  believed  it  had  been  better  for  me  if  his  life 
had  been  preserved,  for  after  his  fall  I  got  the  hatred 
of  those  who  wished  me  well  before,  and  those  who 
set  me  against  him,  set  themselves  afterwards 
against  me  and  were  my  greatest  enemies.' 

When  the  tragedy  was  over,  observers  have 
recorded  how  the  Captain  of  the  Guard  rowed  home 
with  a  very  heavy  and  sorrowful  countenance.  He 
had  lost  his  most  formidable  antagonist,  but  the 
Queen's  sun  was  setting,  and  he  who  was  to  come 
after  her,  James  VI  of  Scotland,  was  already  being 
poisoned  against  Raleigh  in  the  secret  correspond- 
ence of  his  false  friend,  the  double-faced  Cecil.  The 
secretary  was  no  more  able  to  tolerate  a  rival  in  the 
shape  of  a  friend  than  he  was  in  that  of  a  declared 
enemy  like  Essex.  Maybe  that  Raleigh  had  some  pre- 
sentiments for  the  future  that  Ash  Wednesday  as  he 
rowed  over  the  shining  waters  of  the  Thames  to  Dur- 
ham House,  and  it  was  not  only  the  recollection  of 
what  he  had  just  seen  which  brought  the  cloud  of  sad- 
ness to  his  face,  but  dim  forebodings  of  other  scenes 
of  tragedy  in  which  he  was  to  play  the  leading  part. 

100 


CHAPTER  XIV:  Queen 
Elizabeth'' s  Last  Days 

THE  aged  Queen  was  never  the  same  after 
the  head  of  her  favourite  had  rolled  from 
the  block.  Yet  she  affected  at  first  a 
strange  and,  to  our  ideas,  outrageous  callousness  to 
hide  her  real  feelings  of  grief.  When  the  news  was 
oflScially  announced  that  the  tragedy  was  over,  the 
Queen,  who  was  playing  on  the  virginals,  continued 
her  performance  as  if  nothing  had  happened. 
Raleigh  was  present,  and  the  Earl  of  Oxford,  giving 
him  a  significant  glance,  remarked,  referring  to  the 
action  of  her  Majesty's  fingers  on  the  keys  of  the 
instrument,  'When  Jacks  start  up,  then  heads  go 
down.'  Every  one  understood  the  bitter  point  of 
this  allusion. 

Elizabeth  ordered  a  declaration  of  Essex's  treason- 
able misdeeds  to  be  published,  and  a  sermon,  in 
which  he  was  denounced,  to  be  preached  at  St  Paul's 
Cross.  The  people  of  London  resented  both.  They 
could  not  forgive  the  Queen,  and  her  appearance  in 
public  was  in  these  days  greeted  with  silence  instead 
of  with  the  old  shouts  of  loyal  applause. 

The  loss  of  Essex  left  Sir  Robert  Cecil  without  a 
rival  in  the  Court  or  Cabinet,  and  he  soon  exercised 
his  power  to  the  utmost.  Essex  had  confessed  to 
carrying  on  a  secret  correspondence  with  the  King 
of  Scots,  and  had  named  the  agent  he  had  used. 
The  cunning  Cecil  lost  no  time  in  making  use  of  the 
same  tools  to  serve  his  own  ends.  Those  who  were 
left  of  the  Essex  faction,  now  without  a  leader,  were 
ready  to  sell  themselves  to  the  highest  bidder.    Thus 

101 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

the  secretary  was  able  to  establish  a  complete  under- 
standing with  King  James  from  which  Raleigh,  even 
if  he  had  desired  to  be  in  it,  was  shut  out.  While 
Cecil  was  providing  for  his  future,  Raleigh,  on  the 
contrary,  appeared  to  be  curiously  indifferent  to  the 
inevitable  change  that  was  coming,  conscious  that 
the  favour  of  his  sovereign,  whose  life  was  gradually 
ebbing  away,  was  all  he  had  to  cling  to.  Well 
knowing  how  unpopular  he  w^as  both  at  court  and 
in  the  country,  he  was  reluctant  in  making  advances 
to  the  future  sovereign.  Not  that  he  was  content 
with  things  as  they  were,  for  he  wrote  at  this  time  to 
Elizabeth  in  the  following  exaggerated  tone  of 
injury: 

'Your  Majesty  having  left  me,  1  am  left  all  alone 
in  the  world  and  am  sorry  that  I  ever  was  at  all. 
What  I  have  done  is  out  of  zeal  and  love  and  not  by 
any  encouragement,  for  I  am  forgotten  in  all  rights 
and  in  all  affairs  and  mine  enemies  have  their  will 
and  desire  over  me.' 

The  old  grievance  was  rankling  in  Raleigh's  bosom 
as  he  wrote  this,  the  grievance  that  he  had  never 
been  made  one  of  her  Majesty's  privy  councillors 
or  offered  a  more  grandiloquent  title  than  that  of 
plain  knight. 

He  seems  to  have  had  no  suspicion  of  the  real 
danger  he  stood  in,  from  the  machinations  and 
intrigues  of  the  man  with  whom  he  believed  he  was 
united  in  the  bonds  of  true  friendship.  There  were 
many  others  concerned  in  plotting  his  ruin,  and  to 
follow  all  the  ramifications  of  the  conspiracy  against 
him  would  fill  a  volume.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  it  was 
Cecil,  aided  by  the  infamous  Lord  Henry  Howard 

102 


Queen  Elizabeth  V  Last  Days 

(afterward  the  murderer  of  Sir  Thomas  Overbury), 
who  worked  most  assiduously  against  him,  and  was 
the  chief  instrument  in  discrediting  him  with  King 
James. 

Now  that  her  days  were  numbered  the  Queen 
showed  a  greater  aversion  than  ever  to  discussing 
the  subject  of  the  succession  to  her  throne.  But 
statesmen  were  bound  to  consider  it,  and  Cecil  him- 
self would  have  favoured  the  claims  of  the  beautiful 
and  fascinating  Arabella  Stuart  had  she  not  rejected 
his  proposal  to  marry  her  and  so  given  him  cause  for 
personal  pique.  Arabella's  right  was  equal  to  that 
of  James,  for  she  was  the  great-grand-daughter  of 
Margaret  Tudor,  the  sister  of  Henry  VIII  and  a 
cousin  of  James.  The  unfortunate  Queen  of  Scots 
had  disinherited  her  son  James  in  her  will,  and 
bequeathed  her  rights  to  the  English  Crown  to  Philip 
of  Spain,  Elizabeth's  brother-in-law  and  old  enemy, 
whose  claim  was  also  backed  by  his  descent  from 
Philippa  Plantagenet,  a  daughter  of  John  of  Gaunt. 
But  the  old  king,  Philip  II,  was  now  dead,  and  the 
new  King  (Philip  III)  was  far  too  embarrassed  with 
domestic  affairs  and  financial  bankruptcy  to  support 
materially  thelnfanta's  pretensions.  She  and  her 
husband  were  getting  old  and  had  no  children, 
and  really  had  no  desire  to  succeed  to  the 
English  throne;  it  was  as  much  as  they  could 
do  to  keep  the  Netherlands.  Spanish  diplomacy 
therefore  decided  on  dropping  the  Infanta's  claim, 
and  the  English  Catholics  were  informed  that  the 
King  of  Spain  would  support  any  candidate  they 
might  select. 

The  decision  was  come  to  in  March  1603,  and  the 

103 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

claimant  chosen  was  Arabella  Stuart,  who,  after, 
when  a  child  of  twelve,  being  feted  by  Elizabeth  as 
her  probable  successor,  was  under  a  cloud  and  spend- 
ing the  last  days  of  the  Queen's  reign  in  prison.  If 
Cecil  had  not  decided  to  embark  on  intrigues  in 
favour  of  James,  for  the  reason  given,  it  is  quite 
possible  that  the  Lady  Arabella  might  have  peace- 
fully ascended  the  throne.  There  would  have  been 
no  disloyalty  on  the  part  of  Raleigh  if  he  had  worked 
for  this  end,  as  the  question  of  the  succession  was  an 
open  one.  The  idea  was  to  approach  Elizabeth's 
ministers  and  to  enlist  them  on  behalf  of  the  new 
and  disinterested  Spanish  plan  to  exclude  the  Scot, 
who  was  regarded  by  the  majority  of  Englishmen 
as  a  foreigner,  and  undoubtedly  communications 
to  this  effect  may  have  passed  between  Raleigh  and 
Cobham  and  the  envoy  Aremberg. 

Meanwhile  Cecil  carried  on  his  game  of  intrigue 
merrily  in  league  with  Lord  Henry  Howard,  who 
played  the  basest  part  of  all  in  the  dark  drama  of 
betrayal. 

Cecil  could  write  thus  of  the  man  who  had  been 
his  valued  friend: 

'I  do  profess,  before  Him  thatknoweth  and  search- 
eth  all  men's  hearts,  that  if  I  did  not  some  times  cast 
a  stone  into  the  mouth  of  these  gaping  crabs 
[Cobham  and  Raleigh]  when  they  are  in  the  prodigal 
humour  of  discourses  they  would  not  stick  to  confess 
daily  how  contrary  it  is  to  their  nature  to  resolve  to 
be  under  your  sovereignty  though  they  confess 
(Raleigh  especially)  that  rebus  sic  stantibus  natural 
policy  forceth  him  to  keep  on  foot  such  a  trade 
against  the  great  day  of  mart   .    .    . '  and  so  on. 

104 


Queen  Elizabeth  V  Last  Days 

King  James  is  begged  not  to  believe  anything  that 
Raleigh  says  on  any  account  whatever.  Cecil  then 
adds,  'I  will  leave  the  best  and  wor^t  of  him  to  3 
[the  cipher  in  the  secret  correspondence  standing 
for  Lord  Henry  Howard]  in  whose  discretion  and 
affection  you  may  sleep  serenely. ' 

This  Howard,  who  had  been  a  spy  in  the  pay  of 
Spain,  was  possessed  by  the  most  vu-ulent  hatred  of 
Raleigh  and  Cobham  and  their  supposed  friend, 
Northumberland.     'Hell  cannot  afford  such  a  like 
triplicity,'  is  how  he  spoke  of  the  three.     When,  in 
1601,  Raleigh  had  received  James's  emissary,  the 
Duke  of  Lennox,  and  held  friendly  conferences  with 
him  at  Durham  House,  Howard  worked  himself  up 
into  a  frenzy,  and  wrote  to  the  Scotch  court  that 
Lennox  was  raising  a  party  against  Cecil,  repeating 
that  Raleigh,  and  Cobham  were  secretly  opposed  to 
his  succession.     Not  content  with  this,  he  tried  to 
work  a  dastardly  scheme  by  which  the  old  Queen, 
sickening  for  her  last  illness,  was  to  be  alienated 
from  Raleigh  and  her  mind  poisoned  against  Cob- 
ham  and   Northumberland.     *Her  Majesty   must 
know, '  he  wrote  to  Cecil, '  the  rage  of  their  discontent 
for  want  of  being  called  to  that  height  which  they 
affect,  and  be  made  to  taste  the  peril  that  grows  out 
of  discontented  minds.   ...   She  must  know  that 
the  blame  is  only  laid  on  her.   ...   She  must  be 
taught  to  see  the  peril  that  grows  unto  princes  by 
protecting,  countenancing  or  entertaining  persons 
odious  to  the  multitude. '     It  must  be  impressed  on 
the  Queen  by  her  secretary  that '  Rawlie  who  in  pride 
exceedeth  all  men  alive,  finds  no  vent  for  paradoxes 
outside  a  council  board   .    .    . '  that  his  wife  is  *as 

105 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

furious  as  Proserpine  with  failing  of  that  restitution 
at  Court,  which  flatterie  had  moved  her  to  expect. ' 
Then  follow  all  sorts  of  wicked  suggestions  for  en- 
tangling Raleigh  and  Cobham  by  implicating  them 
in  plots  which  did  not  exist. 

Yet  all  this  time  Raleigh's  generous  confidence  in 
the  friend  who  was  serving  him  in  this  underhand 
manner  seems  to  have  remained  unshaken,  for  in 
writing  to  Cecil  on  business  in  1602  he  ends  his  letter 
with  the  following  touching  expression  of  good 
faith : 

'If  we  cannot  have  what  we  would,  methinks  it  is 
a  great  bond  to  find  a  friend  who  will  strain  himself 
in  his  friend's  cause  in  whatsoever  as  this  world 
fareth. ' 

We  have  seen  how  Cecil  was  'straining  himself 
in  Sir  Walter's  cause! 

The  passing  of  Elizabeth's  great  spirit  was 
attended  by  many  painful  and  affecting  incidents, 
For  long  the  Queen  obstinately  refused  to  go  to  bed 
and  crouched  on  the  floor  of  the  Presence  Chamber 
among  her  cushions.  She  could  not  be  persuaded 
to  take  either  medicine  or  spiritual  comfort.  Her 
last  hours  were  troubled  by  terrors  and  horrid 
visions.  At  times  she  would  plunge  her  dagger 
through  the  arras  at  an  imaginary  foe,  or  behold  the 
phantom  of  her  own  wasted  form  pass  before  her 
glazing  eyes. 

At  last  the  end  came  at  Richmond  Palace  on 
March  24th,  1603.  Raleigh  was  not  present  at  the 
death  of  the  Queen.  Her  true  and  loyal  knight- 
errant  for  so  many  years,  the  last  of  those  gallant 
and  brilliant  figures  that  had  added  to  the  lustre  of 


106 


Queen  Elizabeth  V  Last  Days 

her  court  and  made  it  the  admhation  of  the  world, 
he  held  aloof,  and  the  dying  Queen  can  have  ex- 
pressed no  wish  to  see  him  or  he  certainly  would 
have  come  and  not  have  allowed  his  duties  in  Jersey 
or  the  West  Country  to  detain  him.  Thus  even 
before  the  old  Queen  breathed  her  last,  disgrace  had 
descended  on  Raleigh,  and  Cecil  and  Lord  Henry 
Howard's  deep-laid  schemes  were  brought  to  a 
triumphant  issue. 

The  new  sovereign  came  to  the  throne  with  an 
almost  insane  prejudice  against  him.  Raleigh's  day 
was  over,  and  ruin  stared  him  in  the  face.  There 
was  no  one  to  stand  up  for  him  outside  Cornwall 
and  Devon  where  he  was  ever  beloved. 


107 


CHAPTER  XV:  Plots  and 
Conspiracies 

A  MEETING  was  held  at  Whitehall,  directly 
after  the  Queen  had  passed  away,  to  pro- 
claim the  accession  of  James  Stuart  to  the 
throne. 

Though  not  a  privy  councillor,  Raleigh  was  pres- 
ent at  the  consultation,  coming  up  from  the  country 
on  purpose  to  sign  the  letter  of  welcome  to  the  King. 
At  the  same  time  he  declared  his  opinion,  according 
to  Aubrey,^  that  "Twas  the  wisest  way  for  them  to 
keep  the  government  in  their  own  hands  and  set  up  a 
commonwealth  and  not  be  subject  to  a  needy 
beggarly  nation.' 

*It  seems  there  were  some  of  this  cabal,'  Aubrey 
continues,  'who  kept  not  this  secret  but  that  it 
came  to  King  James's  ear.' 

If  this  story  was  true  it  would  naturally  increase 
the  King's  bias,  and  the  antagonism  he  already 
entertained  toward  Sir  Walter.  James  set  out  and 
crossed  the  border  into  his  new  kingdom  early  in 
April.  There  was  a  rush  out  of  London  on  the  part 
of  the  nobility  and  gentry  to  meet  him.  So  great 
was  the  stampede  that  a  proclamation  was  issued  to 
forbid  anyone  who  had  no  official  right  going  to  the 
reception  of  his  Majesty,  but  Raleigh,  contrary  to 
Cecil's  urgent  advice,  went,  on  the  plea  that  he  must 
obtain  the  royal  authority  for  his  administration  of 
the  Duchy  of  Cornwall.  The  King  is  said  to  have 
greeted  the  announcement  of  his  name  with  the 

1  Lives  of  Eminent  Men.     By  John  Aubrey. 
108 


Plots  a?id  Conspiracies 

maladroit  pun,  *  Raleigh!  On  my  soul,  mon,  I  have 
heard  rawly  of  thee. ' 

The  gorgeous  display  in  'exceeding  rich  equipage' 
made  by  the  noblemen  who  came  to  flatter  and  curry 
favour  with  James  on  his  entry  into  England  seems 
to  have  displeased  rather  than  delighted  him.  He 
remarked  that  if  his  arrival  had  been  opposed  in- 
stead of  hailed  with  rejoicing,  he  did  not  doubt  that 
he  could  have  asserted  his  claim  by  force  and  have 
overcome  all  objections.  'Would  to  God  that  had 
been  put  to  the  trial,'  Raleigh  exclaimed.  'Your 
Majesty  would  then  have  known  your  friends  from 
your  enemies.' 

The  King  interpreted  this  speech  as  having  a 
double  meaning,  and  never  forgave  it.  Thus,  at  the 
start,  personal  acquaintance  only  strengthened  the 
prejudice  which  had  been  so  carefully  fostered  by 
misrepresentation,  and  Raleigh,  indeed,  was  not 
kept  long  in  suspense  about  the  King's  intentions 
toward  him.  Blow  after  blow  fell  on  him  rapidly. 
In  May  he  was  deprived  of  his  rank  as  Captain  of  the 
Guard  and  of  his  most  profitable  source  of  income 
in  the  shape  of  monopolies,  his  right  to  the  office  of 
licenser  of  wines  being  called  in  question.  His  beau- 
tiful London  home  for  twenty  years,  Durham 
House,  with  '  the  prospect  as  pleasant  as  any  in  the 
world,'  was  taken  away  from  him  and  restored  to  its 
original  owners,  the  bishops  of  Durham.  The 
King's  warrant  to  the  judges  set  forth  that  the  law 
having  decided  that  the  persons  '  that  now  dwell  in 
the  Bishop  of  Duresme's  house  called  Duresme 
Place  have  no  right  therein  and  shall  have  notice  to 
quit.' 

109 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

Raleigh  had  spent  £2000  in  improving  and  beauti- 
fying the  old  palace,  but  was  not  allowed  to  remove 
any  fixtures.  Though  he  begged  to  be  allowed  to 
stay  on  till  Michaelmas,  he  was  forced  to  turn 
out  by  midsummer  in  spite  of  his  protest  that 
*even  a  poor  artificer  is  entitled  to  three  months' 
notice  from  his  landlord.'  Poor  Raleigh  might 
well  speak  of  himself  now  as  *mad  with  intricate 
affairs  and  want  of  means.'  He  made  every  en- 
deavour to  win  his  way  with  the  new  sovereign,  by 
grovelling  flattery  and  submission,  while  all  the 
time  his  proud  soul  was  in  revolt.  In  July  he  was 
put  under  arrest,  and  Cecil  wrote  of  the  event  as 
follows: 

'  This  hath  been  the  cause.  First  he  hath  been 
discontented  ever  since  the  King  came,  and  yet  for 
those  offices  taken  from  him  the  King  gave  him 
£300  a  year  for  life.  Secondly  his  inwardness  or 
his  rather  governing  Lord  Cobham's  spirit  made 
great  suspicion  that  in  these  treaso;ns  he  had 
part.' 

The  'treasons'  here  alluded  to  were  the  two  plots 
afterward  known  as  the  'Bye'  and  the  'Main.'  It 
was  almost  impossible  for  the  most  unscrupulous 
of  his  accusers  to  implicate  Raleigh  in  the  Bye  Plot, 
which  was  the  outcome  of  Catholic  discontent  at  the 
peaceful  solution  of  the  succession  problem.  It  is 
true  there  were  Puritan  malcontents  too,  such  as 
Lord  Grey  of  Wilton,  who  joined  with  the  priests, 
Watson  and  Clarke,  and  Lord  Cobham's  brother, 
George  Brooke,  Anthony  Copley  and  Sir  Griffith 
Markham  in  a  conspiracy,  the  object  of  which  was 
to  surprise  and  seize  James  and  force  from  him  a 

110 


Plots  and  Conspiracies 

decree  of  absolute  toleration  for  Roman  Catholics. 
At  his  trial  Raleigh  was  exonerated  from  having 
anything  to  do  with  this  foolish  and  clumsily  con- 
ceived plot,  though  his  friend  Lord  Cobham  must 
have  known  of  it  through  his  brother  George  Brooke. 
It  was  on  his  connexion  with  Cobham,  weak-minded 
a/ud  loquacious,  who  was  the  chief  mover  in  the 
*Main,'  that  the  case  trumped  up  against  Raleigh 
was  based.  The  Main  Plot  concerned  the  claim  of 
Arabella  Stuart  and  secret  dealings  with  Spain. 
Cobham  had  been  engaged  in  intrigues  with  Arem- 
berg,  the  Flemish  envoy  of  the  Infanta,  and  because 
he  was  the  only  man  now  on  intimate  terms  of 
friendship  with  Raleigh,  it  was  concluded  that  he 
must  have  been  aware  of  Cobham's  proceedings. 
George  Brooke,  while  under  examination  about  the 
teye  Plot,  threw  out  dark  hints  of  the  other  treason- 
able transactions,  and,  after  a  little  pressure,  con- 
fessed his  know^ledgeof  a  more  important  conspiracy. 
He  declared  that  he  confidently  thought  what  his 
brother  knew  was  'known  to  the  other,'  and  that 
Raleigh  had  been  thought  by  the  conspirators  a  'fit 
man  to  be  of  the  action.'  Brooke,  in  fact,  belonging 
to  both  conspiracies,  gave  every  one  away,  in  hopes 
of  being  paid  for  his  information.  He  was  an  un- 
scrupulous scamp,  with  a  handsome  person  and 
plausible  manners. 

Raleigh,  knowing  only  too  well  the  vagaries  of  the 
law  at  that  time  with  regard  to  treason,  looked 
neither  for  justice  nor  leniency  on  the  part  of  his 
judges.  He  felt  keenly  the  hopelessness  of  his  posi- 
tion. The  populace  hated  him,  as  did  the  King,  and 
the  nobles, who  had  always  been  jealous  of  him.     He 

111 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

and  Cobham  were  lodged  In  the  Tower,  and  before 
he  had  been  tried  he  was  treated  as  if  his  treason 
were  proved.  He  had  no  choice  but  to  resign  his 
wardenship  of  the  Stanneries  and  the  governorship 
of  Jersey.  We  have  seen  that  Raleigh's  was  a 
temperament  prone  to  be  plunged  in  despair  when 
overtaken  by  troubles,  so  it  is  easy  to  believe  that 
while  awaiting  trial  in  the  Tower  he  made  an  at- 
tempt on  his  life.  The  wound,  inflicted  by  a  table 
knife,  was  slight  and  he  soon  recovered.  He  also 
recovered  his  wonderful  spirits  and  energy,  and  set 
himself  w^ith  zeal  to  the  task  of  defending  himself. 

Before  his  arrest,  Cobham,  in  an  outburst  of 
passion,  had  rounded  on  Raleigh  during  his  examina- 
tion by  the  Lords  of  the  Council  regarding  the  Main 
Plot.  He  had  called  him  traitor  and  villain,  and 
sworn  that  he  would  never  have  ^entered  into  these 
courses  but  by  the  instigation  of  Raleigh  who  would 
never  let  him  alone.'  He  soon^,  however,  repented 
the  charges  he  had  made  against  his  friend,  and 
was  impatient  to  retract  them.  In  the  Tower  he 
was  anxious  to  do  anything  he  could  to  atone  for 
his  hastiness  and  clear  Sir  Walter.  He  asked  the 
governor  of  the  Tower  to  be  allowed  to  write  a  letter 
to  the  Council  withdrawing  his  accusations.  *God 
is  my  witness,'  he  said;  *it  doth  touch  my  con- 
science.' The  governor,  Harvey,  probably  to 
please  Cecil,  declined  to  help  him  to  express  his 
penitence.  Soon  after  Raleigh  contrived  that  an 
apple  containing  a  letter  inside  it  should  be  tossed 
into  the  window  of  Cobham's  cell  in  the  Ward- 
robe Tower.  It  besought  Cobham  to  confess  that 
he  had  wronged  him.     The  letter  which  Cobham 

112 


Plots  and  Conspiracies 

wrote  in  reply  was  not  to  Raleigh's  contenting,  and 
he  begged  earnestly  that  Cobham  would  vindicate 
him  more  completely  at  the  approaching  trial. 
But  the  repentant  Cobham,  eager  not  to  put  off 
but  to  make  amends  at  once,  sent  another  letter 
forthwith.  This  time  Raleigh  pronounced  it  Very 
good,'  as  well  he  might  for  it  contained  the  following 
lines: 

*I  never  practised  with  Spain  for  your  procure- 
ment. .  .  for  anything  I  know  you  are  as  inno- 
cent and  clear  from  any  treason  against  the  King 
as  is  subject  living.' 

Raleigh  cherished  this  letter  in  his  bosom  to  serve 
as  a  refutation  at  his  trial,  and  started  in  better 
hopes  to  face  his  accusers. 


113 


CHAPTER  XVI:   Raleigh's 
Trial  at  W^inchester^  1603 

THE  plague  was  raging  in  London  that 
autumn;  and  King  James  and  his  Danish 
Queen  held  their  court  at  Winchester 
Castle,  whither  the  courts  of  justice  were  also  re- 
moved from  London.  In  grey  November  weather 
began  the  unravelling  of  the  intricate  'Bye'  and 
'Main'  conspiracies  and  the  trial  of  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh.  The  prisoner  went  in  his  own  coach, 
which  was  stormed  on  the  way  with  brick-bats  and 
tobacco-pipes  hurled  ferociously  by  the  mob  at 
the  hero  of  Cadiz,  the  great  adventurer,  knight- 
errant  and  high  favourite  of  the  late  Queen,  and 
who,  though  he  seemed  cut  out  for  a  popular  idol, 
was  so  strangely  hated  by  the  crowd.  It  was 
'touch  and  go  whether  Raleigh  could  be  brought 
alive  through  such  multitudes  of  unruly  people,' 
wrote  one  of  his  keepers.  Tt  was  almost  incredible 
what  bitter  speeches  they,  the  mob,  exclaimed 
against  him  as  he  went  along;  which  general  hatred 
of  the  people,  worse  than  death  to  some — he  scorned 
and  neglected  as  from  base  and  rascal  people.' 

The  charge  against  Raleigh  was  for  plotting  with 
Cobham  and  Brooke  'to  deprive  the  King  of  his 
crown  and  dignity,  to  subvert  the  government  and 
alter  the  true  religion  established  in  England  and  to 
levy  war  against  the  King.' 

In  these  days  such  a  travesty  of  justice  as  his 
trial  would  happily  be  impossible.  From  beginning 
to  end  it  was  a  hollow  mockery  of  the  law,  and  is 
one  of  the  darkest  and  most  disgraceful  blots  in 

114 


■RALEIGH'S    COACH    STORMED    BY   THE    MOB"— /"or/c    m 


Raleigh'^ s  Trial  at  W^inchester 

the  annals  of  English  jurisprudence.  The  judges 
on  the  Bench,  before  whom  the  accused  knight  de- 
fended himself  with  the  most  consummate  skill  and 
amazing  spirit,  were  Sir  John  Popham,  Lord  Chief 
Justice  of  England,  and  Chief  Justices  Gawdy  and 
Warburton.  Associated  with  these  were  Lord 
Thomas  Howard,  who  had  been  with  Raleigh  at 
Cadiz;  Lord  Mountjoy ;  the  false  Cecil;  and  Raleigh's 
most  bitter  enemy.  Lord  Henry  Howard. 

Coke,  the  Attorney- General,  a  foul-mouthed, 
abusive  scoundrel,  opened  the  prosecution.  Raleigh 
pleaded  *Not  Guilty,'  and  when  addressing  the 
jury  requested  them  to  remember  that  he  was  not 
so  much  as  charged  with  the  treason  called  the 
*Bye'  which  Coke  made  the  theme  of  his  opening 
speech.  Lady  Arabella  Stuart,  fair  and  lovely,  was 
in  the  court  as  a  looker-on.  Lord  Cecil,  standing  at 
the  Council  board  before  the  judges,  said,  *There 
hath  been  touched  upon  the  Lady  Arabella  Stuart,  a 
near  kinswoman  of  the  King.  Let  us  not  scandalize 
the  innocent  by  confusion  of  speech.  She  is  as 
innocent  of  tkese  things  as  any  here,  only  she  re- 
ceived a  letter  from  my  Lord  Cobham  to  prepare  her 
for  the  proceedings  of  the  conspirators  which  she 
laughed  at  and  sent  to  the  King.  So  far  was  she 
from  being  malcontent,  that  she  laughed  the  con- 
spirator Cobham  to  scorn.' 

The  lady  in  question  turned  pale  and  trembled, 
but  whispered  something  to  the  Lord  High  Admiral, 
who  was  sitting  beside  her,  whereupon  he  rose  and 
declared,  'This  lady  here  doth  protest  upon  her 
salvation  that  she  never  dealt  in  any  of  these  things, 
and  she  willeth  me  to  tell  the  Court.' 

115 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

Then  Lord  Cecil  again  spoke  on  the  Lady  Ara- 
bella's behalf,  and  said  that  Lord  Cobham  had 
sought  an  interview  with  her  to  tell  her  of  people 
about  the  King  who  wanted  to  disgrace  her,  but 
she  'doubted  this  was  but  a  trick.' 

Next,  the  dare-devil  George  Brooke  avowed  that 
his  brother,  Lord  Cobham,  had  urged  him  to  get 
Lady  Arabella  to  write  letters  to  the  King  of 
Spain,  but  he  had  never  got  her  to  do  it.  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh  referred  to  the  lady  slightingly  as 
a  woman  *with  whom  he  had  no  acquaintance  and 
of  all  whom  he  ever  saw,  he  liked  her  the  least.' 

Haleigh  was  described  as  looking  'grey  and  sick.' 
He  was  baited  by  the  bully  Coke,  bellowed  at, 
entangled  in  his  speech,  called  'viper'  and  'traitor,' 
and  had  insults  heaped  upon  him.  Yet  he  came 
through  the  ordeal  magnificently,  displaying  a  'wit, 
learning  and  courage,'  which  won  the  admiration  of 
every  disinterested  spectator.  He  pointed  out  that 
the  bald  statements  of  the  Attorney-General  with- 
out proof  were  not  evidence.  'I  do  not  hear  that 
you  have  spoken  one  word  against  me.  Here  is  no 
treason  of  mine  done.  If  my  Lord  Cobham  be  a 
traitor,  what  is  that  to  me?' 

'All  that  he  did,'  replied  Coke,  'was  by  thy 
instigation,  thou  viper!  I  will  prove  thee  the 
rankest  traitor  in  all  England.' 

Whenever  Raleigh  seemed  to  be  scoring  a  point, 
or  the  Attorney  General's  tongue  failed  to  find 
more  vituperative  epithets,  Cecil  and  Howard  put 
in  their  word — all  the  etiquette  of  a  court  of  justice 
was  outraged.  Once  Coke  shouted  at  the  top  of 
his  voice,  'Your  intent  was  to  set  up  the  Lady  Ara- 

116 


Raleigh'^ s  Trial  at  TVinchester 

bella  as  a  titular  Queen,  and  to  dispose  our  present 
rightful  King.  Your  jargon  was  peace,  which 
meant  Spanish  invasion  and  Scottish  subversion/ 
To  this  Raleigh  answered,  'Let  me  answer — it  con- 
cerns my  life.'  *Thou  shalt  not,'  roared  Coke, 
and  Popham  bade  the  prisoner  hold  his  tongue. 
He  was  told  that  he  was  'a  monster  with  an  English 
face  but  a  Spanish  heart,'  and  so  on.  When  at 
last  he  was  given  a  chance  to  speak,  Raleigh  denied 
emphatically  that  he  had  ever  entered  into  any  plots 
with  Cobham.  As  his  supposed  guilt  rested  alone 
on  Lord  Cobham's  word,  he  begged  to  be  confronted 
with  him,  but  this  was  refused.  He  swore  that  he 
had  been  the  life-long  enemy  of  Spain.  Would  he 
then  be  so  mad,  he  asked,  knowing  how  poor,  im- 
potent and  bankrupt  Spain  was  and  the  present 
powerful  state  of  England,  united  with  Scotland 
under  one  King,  as  to  play  Jack  Cade  now  at  Spain's 
bidding  and  dance  while  she  pulled  the  strings.  He 
explained  his  frequent  meetings  with  Cobham  as 
connected  with  private  affairs.  'B  ut  for  my  knowing 
that  he  had  conspired  these  things  with  Spain  for 
Arabella  against  the  King  I  protest  before  Almighty 
God  I  am  as  clear  as  whosoever  here  is  freest.' 

If  he,  Cobham,  the  accused  continued,  came  for- 
ward and  on  his  honour  said  that  he  had  been  set  up 
by  him  to  engage  in  treasonable  plots  in  the  interest 
of  Spain,  he  would  submit  to  be  dealt  with  as  the 
King  willed.  Raleigh  said  this,  confidently  relying 
on  that  letter  of  recantation  which  Cobham  had 
written  to  him  in  the  Tower,  which  was  to  be  his 
trump  card  against  his  accusers.  Yet  before  he 
could  produce  it  and  prove  that  Cobham  had,  in  his 

117 


Sir  TValter  Raleigh 

own  handwriting,  absolved  him  from  blame.  Coke 
out-trumped  Raleigh  by  reading  another  letter  from 
Cobham  in  which  the  poor,  weak  turn-coat  had 
purchased  favour  by  recalling  his  recantation.  Tri- 
umphantly the  Attorney-General  sprung  it  on  the 
prisoner,  reading  it  aloud  to  the  court.  *I  have 
thought  fit  in  duty  to  my  Sovereign  and  in  discharge 
of  my  conscience,'  it  began,  *  to  set  this  down  to  your 
Lordships,  wherein  I  protest  upon  my  soul  to  write 
nothing  but  what  is  true ' 

He  goes  on  to  say  that '  this  is  no  time  to  dissemble 
with  God,'  and  tells  how  Raleigh  had  besought  him 
to  absolve  him  in  the  letter  which  he  wrote  from  his 
cell  in  the  Tower,  that  the  truth  was  that  Raleigh 
had  suggested  to  him  to  obtain  through  Count 
Aremberg  a  pension  of  £1500  a  year  from  Spain  to 
pay  spies  to  report  on  all  that  passed  in  England. 
He  blames  Raleigh  for  everything  that  has  befallen 
hini,  and  gives  an  account  of  the  incident  of  the 
apple  being  thrown  in  at  his  window. 

For  a  moment  the  revelation  of  Cobham's  perfidy 
upset  the  prisoner's  equilibrium.  He  stood  utterly 
overwhelmed  and  *much  amazed.'  But  he  rallied 
and  soon  gathered  his  spirits  again  sufiiciently  to 
continue  his  brilliant  defence.  He  produced  Cob- 
ham's  letter,  and  Cecil  consented  to  read  it  aloud. 
It  was  difficult  to  decide  when  the  pitiable,  perjured 
creature  had  lied  and  when  he  had  spoken  the  truth. 
He  had  contradicted  himself  so  often.  But  judges 
and  jury  made  it  a  foregone  conclusion  that  when 
Cobham's  evidence  was  against  Raleigh  it  was  the 
truth,  and  he  was  found  guilty. 

Before  the  verdict  was  given,  Raleigh  again  pro- 

118 


Raleigh'^ 5  Trial  at  TVinchester 

tested  vainly  with  impassioned  vigour  that  Cobham 
was  false.  He  again  solemnly  affirmed  that  he  was 
innocent  of  intrigues  with  Spain,  that  he  knew 
nothing  of  the  plot  with  regard  to  Arabella  Stuart, 
that  he  was  ignorant  of  Cobham's  dealings  with 
Aremberg.  Sentence  of  death  was  passed  by  the 
judge,  Popham,  and  in  language  more  coarse  and 
undignified  than  even  Coke's  had  been,  and  the 
disgraceful  scene  came  to  an  end. 

One  who  was  present  at  the  trial  has  recorded  thus 
Raleigh's  part  in  it.  *He  did  as  much  as  wit  of 
man  could  devise  to  clear  himself.  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  served  for  a  whole  act  and  played  all  the 
parts  himself.  He  answered  with  that  w^it,  learning, 
courage  and  judgment  that,  save  it  went  with  the 
hazard  of  his  life,  it  was  the  happiest  day  that  he 
had  ever  spent;  and  so  well  he  shifted  all  advantages 
that  were  taken  against  him  that  were  not  an  ill 
name  half-hanged  in  the  opinion  of  all  men,  he 
would  have  been  acquitted." 

The  impression  produced  on  two  impartial  ob- 
severs  by  Raleigh's  eloquent  defence  was  further 
given  in  a  report  to  the  King.  One  said  that '  Never 
man  spoke  so  well  in  times  past,  nor  would  do  in  the 
times  to  come.'  The  other's  testimony  was  still 
more  striking,  for  he  declared  *that  whereas  when  he 
first  saw  Sir  Walter  he  would  have  gone  a  hundred 
miles  to  see  him  hanged  he  was  so  led  by  the  common 
hatred,  he  would  ere  they  parted  have  gone  a  thou- 
sand to  save  his  life.' 

Even  the  common  people  among  the  audience 
were  equally  impressed  by  the  pluck  of  the  man  they 
had  detested,  and  often  hissed  Coke's  brutal  attacks. 

119 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

The  French  Ambassador,  Beaumont,  probably 
voiced  the  general  opinion  when  he  said  Raleigh  was 
guilty,  but  had  been  unlawfully  sentenced.  After  all 
if  everything  with  which  he  was  formally  charged 
had  been  proved  he  would  not  have  been  guilty  of 
treason.  For,  listening  to  Cobham's  schemes  for 
getting  money  from  Spain,  and  having  demanded  a 
pension  in  reward  for  the  disclosure  of  State  secrets 
was  not  a  treasonable  offence.  Many  of  his  dis- 
tinguished contemporaries  in  the  last  reign  had  been 
pensioners  of  Spain,  and  seen  no  harm  in  it.  Cob- 
ham's  kinsman.  Sir  Edward  Stafford,  the  English 
Ambassador  in  Paris,  had  sold  secrets  to  Spain  be- 
fore the  Armada.  The  selfrighteous  Cecil  himself 
had  been  in  the  pay  of  Spain,  and  Northumberland 
in  that  of  France.  Such  was  the  lax  political  mor- 
ality of  the  times — the  *  spacious'  times  of  great 
Elizabeth. 

The  whole  fabric  of  Raleigh's  supposed  guilt  was 
built  on  the  shifty  word  of  Cobham,  well  hit  off  by 
Raleigh's  description  of  him  as  a  'base,  dishonour- 
able poor  soul.'  A  structure  of  lies  reared  on  so  un- 
stable a  foundation  is  easily  dispersed  by  the  truth 
of  history,  and  no  one  believes  to-day  that  there  was 
ever  the  faintest  shadow  of  eviklence  to  support  the 
theory  of  Raleigh's  guilt.  On  his  way  to  his  trial, 
hooted  and  jeered  at  by  the  multitude,  who  would 
have  liked  to  tear  him  to  pieces,  when  he  came  out 
convicted  of  treason  and  condemned  to  death, 
Raleigh  became  all  at  once  an  object  of  universal 
sympathy  and  admiration.  Then  it  was  that  the 
fickle  mob  reared  him  to  his  niche  in  the  Valhalla  of 
our  heroes,  from  which  he  has  never  since  fallen. 

120 


CHAPTER  XVII:    The 

Reprieve 

THE  ringleader  of  the  *Bye,'  George  Brooke, 
who  was  also  steeped  in  the  conspiracy 
of  the  'Main,'  was  beheaded  in  the  follow- 
ing December  at  Winchester,  meeting  his  death  with 
the  same  airy  nonchalance  as  he  had  lived.  The 
unfortunate  priests,  Watson  and  Clarke,  were  drawn 
and  quartered,  and  their  remains  exhibited  to  the 
public  view  on  the  city  gates. 

But  the  King  was  advised  on  all  sides  not  to  begin 
his  reign  with  wholesale  bloodshed,  so  the  sentence 
on  the  other  prisoners  was  commuted  at  the  last 
minute.  The  Queen  was  specially  urgent  in  peti- 
tioning that  R-aleigh's  life  should  be  spared.  The 
Spanish  Ambassador  (the  first  there  had  been  for 
twenty  years)  also  joined  his  voice  to  hers  in  plead- 
ing for  clemency  on  behalf  of  the  condemned 
conspirators. 

James  at  first  affected  to  be  deaf  to  all  entreaties 
for  mercy.  All  the  same  he  w^as  not  a  man  of 
blood  and  iron,  and  had  no  intention  really  of  the 
sentence  of  death  being  carried  out.  He  could  not 
resist  indulging  in  a  characteristic  surprise  trick, 
however,  and  signed  the  death  warrants  at  Wilton, 
where  he  and  his  court  were  being  entertained  by  the 
Earl  of  Pembroke,  as  the  plague  still  raged  in  Lon- 
don. Those  who  were  to  have  suffered  first — Mark- 
ham,  Lord  Grey,  and  Cobham — were,  one  by  one, 
led  forth  to  the  scaffold,  and  Raleigh  watched  them 
from  his  prison  window  through  a  veil  of  silvery 
rain. 

121 


Sir  JVaher  Raleigh 

Markham,  it  was  said,  looked  sad  and  heavy,  the 
very  picture  of  sorrow,  though  he  bore  himself 
resolutely;  Lord  Grey,  staunch  in  his  puritanism, 
was  full  of  dignity  and  bade  his  friends  a  cheerful 
farewell.  Cobham  appeared  as  ready  to  die  as  the 
rest,  and  his  brave  front  on  the  scaffold  was  a  con- 
trast to  his  wavering  poltroonery  during  his  first  im- 
prisonment and  at  the  trial.  He  declared  'that 
what  he  had  said  of  Sir  Walter  was  true  as  he  hoped 
for  his  soul's  resurrection,'  but  it  was  not  clear  to 
which  statement  he  referred,  for  he  had  said  so  many 
contradictory  things  that  all  could  not  be  true. 

And  as  they  had,  one  by  one,  been  led  forth,  so 
Raleigh  saw  the  prisoners,  one  by  one,  removed  from 
the  place  of  execution.  Next  he  heard  them  being 
harangued  by  the  Sheriff,  and  then  it  must  have 
dawned  on  him,  though  he  was  too  far  off  to  hear 
distinctly  what  was  said,  that  his  fellow-prisoners 
were  not  to  be  executed.  Soon  afterward  the  news 
of  his  own  reprieve  was  brought  to  him. 

The  man  who  had  faced  death  a  hundred  times 
with  splendid  courage,  who  had  fearlessly  run  the 
gauntlet  of  rebel  spears  and  ambushes  in  Ireland, 
was  not  above  praying  for  his  life  as  abjectly  as  any 
craven.  While  he  lay  under  sentence  of  death, 
Raleigh's  conduct  was  indeed  marked  by  a  cowardice 
for  which  all  who  admire  him  most  must  feel  regret, 
if  not  shame.  He  humiliated  himself  to  the  dust 
to  beg  for  his  life  in  letters  of  exhortation  to  the 
Lords  of  the  Council,  to  Cecil  and  to  James.  In 
these  humble  suppHcations  Lady  Raleigh  joined, 
casting  dignity  and  pride  to  the  winds.  They  abso- 
lutely grovelled,  so  that  Raleigh,  a  little  later,  seems 

122 


The  Reprieve 

to  have  been  disgusted  at  his  own  self-abasement, 
for  he  instructed  his  wife  to  secure,  if  possible,  the 
letters  in  which  he  had  sued  for  his  life  to  the  Lords. 
*God  knows,'  he  wrote,  'that  it  was  for  you  and 
yours  that  I  desired  it.     But  it  is  true  that  I  dis- 
dain myself  for  begging  it.'     The  letter  was  written 
when  death  seemed  inevitable,  and  is  expressed  in 
that  exquisite  and  pathetic  English  of  which  Raleigh 
was  a  supreme  master.     It  shows  the  noblest  side  of 
hi^  versatile  character,  even  as  the  letters  he  himself 
thought  of  *with  disdain'  show  the  basest.     'You 
shall  receive,  dear  wife,  my  last  words  in  these  my 
last  lines.     My  love  I  send  you  that  you  may  keep 
it  when  I  am  dead  and  my  counsel  that  you  may 
remember  it  when  I  am  no  more.     I  would  not  with 
my  last  will  present  you  with  sorrows,  dear  Bess. 
Let  them  go  to  the  grave  with  me  and  be  buried  in 
the  dust  .    .    .   and  seeing  it  is  not  the  will  of  God 
that  I  shall  ever  see  you  in  this  life,  bear  my  destruc- 
tion gently  and  with  a  heart  like  yourself.     First  I 
send  you  all  the  thanks  my  heart  can  conceive  or  my 
pen  express  for  your  many  troubles  and  cares  taken 
for  me  which — though  they  have  not  taken  effect  as 
you  wished — yet  my  debt  is  to  you  nevertheless, 
but  pay  it  I  never  shall  in  this  world.'     Then  he 
begs  her  not  to  mourn  too  long,  suggests  her  marry- 
ing again,  and  deplores  that  he  leaves  her  and  his 
boy  so  badly  off.     'Remember  your  poor  child,'  he 
goes  on, '  for  his  father's  sake  that  comforted  you  and 
loved  you  in  his  happiest  time,  and  know  it,  dear 
wife,  that  your  son  is  the  child  of  a  true  man,  who 
in  his  own  respect  despiseth  death  and  all  his  mis- 
shapen and  ugly  forms.    I  cannot  write  much.     God 

123 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

knows  how  hardly  I  stole  this  time  when  all  sleep, 
and  it  is  time  to  separate  my  thoughts  from  the 
world.  Beg  my  dead  body  which  living  was  denied 
you.  .  .  .  I  can  write  no  more.  Time  and  death 
call  me  away ....  My  true  wife,  farewell.  Bless 
my  poor  boy,  pray  for  me.  My  true  God  hold  you 
both  in  his  arms.  Written  with  the  dying  hand  of 
sometime  thy  husband,  but  now  alas  overthrowne. 
Yours  that  was,  but  now  not  my  own 

W.  Raleigh.' 

Very  different  from  this  touching  epistle  were 
the  cringing  and  flattering  letters  which  Raleigh 
addressed  to  his  *Most  Dread  Sovereign.'  He  pro- 
tested before  him  and  the  'Everlasting  God'  that  he 
never  invented  treason,  consented  to  treason,  nor 
performed  treason.  *I  do  therefore  on  the  knees  of 
my  heart,  beseech  your  Majesty's  great  compassion 
to  take  counsel  from  your  own  sweet  and  merciful 
disposition  and  to  remember  that  I  have  loved  your 
Majesty  now  twenty  years  for  which  your  Majesty 
have  yet  given  me  no  reward .  .  .  Save  me,  there- 
fore, most  merciful  Prince  that  I  may  owe  to  your 
Majesty  my  life  itself,  than  which  there  cannot  be 
a  greater  debt.  Send  it  to  me  at  least,  my  Sover- 
eign Lord,  that  I  may  pay  it  again  for  your  service 
when  your  Majesty  shall  please.  If  the  law  de- 
stroy me  your  Majesty  shall  put  me  out  of  your 
power  and  I  shall  have  then  none  to  fear,  none  to 
reverence  but  the  King  of  Kings.    .    .    .' 

Thus  did  the  once  haughty  favourite  of  England's 
Elizabeth  humble  himself  and  fawn  at  the  feet  of 
her  ignoble  and  unworthy  successor. 

Less  than  a  week  after  the  painful  drama  enacted 

124 


The  Reprieve 

on  the  scaffold  at  Winchester,  Raleigh  and  his 
fellow-conspirators  were  brought  to  London  and 
lodged  first  in  the  Tower  and  then  in  the  Fleet  and 
then  again  in  the  Tower,  till  finally  Raleigh  was 
settled  with  his  wife  and  child  in  a  suite  of  rooms  in 
the  Bloody  Tower,  where  he  was  not  badly  off  for 
accommodation.  Here  he  began  to  concentrate  his 
mind  on  how  best  to  provide  for  the  future  of  his 
wife  and  little  son.  Though  he  was  reprieved  he 
was  not  pardoned,  and  was  beggared  of  '  all  his  vast 
emoluments  and  wealth.'  He  had  sold  his  estates 
in  Ireland  long  before  to  the  Earl  of  Cork,  but  his 
beloved  Sherborne  was  still  left,  and  he  hoped  it 
might  escape  confiscation.  It  was  in  t,he  hands  of 
royal  commissioners,  and  greedy  agents  were  plun- 
dering everything  they  could  grasp. 

His  patent  for  the  licensing  of  wines  had  passed 
to  the  Earl  of  Nottingham,  the  new  title  of  the  Lord 
Admiral  Howard,  and  all  his  oflSces  were  forfeited. 
Yet  he  strove  hard  to  save  the  ashes  of  his  fortune. 
His  wife  bravely  struggled  to  help,  with  the  co-opera- 
ion  of  Cecil  who,  now  that  there  was  no  longer 
cause  to  fear  Raleigh's  rivalry  in  the  esteem  of  the 
new  sovereign,  had  partly  resumed  his  earlier  friend- 
ly relations  with  him.  By  his  intervention  the  in- 
terests of  Lady  Raleigh  and  her  son  in  Sherborne 
were  safe-guarded,  and  the  estates  conveyed  for 
sixty  years  in  trust  for  them.  But  through  some 
flaw  in  the  deed  of  conveyance,  which  had  been 
drawn  up  in  1602,  it  was  declared  void.  The 
property  on  which  Raleigh  had  lavished  so  much  care 
and  a  small  fortune  was  ultimately  bestowed  on  the 
infamous  Carr,  James's  handsome  and  unworthy 

125 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

favourite.  It  was  in  vain  that  Lady  Raleigh  pros- 
trated herseK  at  the  feet  of  the  King  and  implored 
to  have  her  home  and  hearth  spared.  The  only 
answer  she  got  was  'Na!  Na!  I  maun  hae  the  land. 
I  maun  hae  it  for  Carr.'  For  this  cultivated  mon- 
arch, who  was  versed  in  the  classics  and  could,  if 
he  like,  converse  in  Latin  and  Greek,  always  used 
the  broadest  Scotch  vernacular  in  everyday  conver- 
sation. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  Raleigh  should  have 
degraded  himself  to  plead  for  his  estates  to  such 
a  despicable  creature  as  Carr.  He  wrote  to  him 
in  his  most  pathetic  vein,  telHng  him  that  after 
'  many  great  losses  and  many  years  of  sorrow  .  .  . 
it  comes  to  my  knowledge  that  yourself  have 
been  persuaded  to  give  me  and  mine  our  last 
fatal  blow,  by  obtaining  from  His  Majesty  the  in- 
heritance of  my  children  and  nephews  lost  in  law. 
This  done  there  remaineth  nothing  with  me  but  the 
bare  name  of  life,  despoiled  of  all  else  but  the  grief 
and  sorrow  thereof — and  for  yourself,  sir,  seeing  your 
day  is  but  now  in  dawn  and  mine  come  to  the  even- 
ing, your  own  virtues  and  the  King's  grace  assuring 
you  of  many  good  fortunes  and  much  honour,  I  be- 
seech you  not  to  begin  your  first  buildings  upon  the 
ruins  of  the  innocent.' 

Carr  got  Sherborne,  but  it  did  not  prosper  in  his 
hands,  and  changed  ownership  eight  times  in  as 
many  years.  Before  its  former  owner  came  out  of 
the  Tower,  the  Earl  of  Somerset  (the  title  given  to 
the  upstart  Carr)  had  entered  it  in  disgrace,  a  far 
more  merited  disgrace  than  Raleigh's. 

Lady  Raleigh,  in  consideration  of  her  interest  in 

126 


The  Reprieve 

the  estate,  was  granted  £8000,  which,  though  it  was 
not  all  paid,  saved  her  and  the  family  from  absolute 
penury.  Thus  they  settled  down  to  twelve  long 
years  of  captivity.  But  the  indomitable  spirit  of 
Raleigh  was  never  quenched.  He  chafed  against 
the  bars  of  his  prison  like  a  snared  eagle;  his  hair 
grew  white  as  snow,  and  his  turbulent  pulse  became 
sluggish,  his  body  numb  from  damp  and  agues;  yet 
his  wonderful  mind  suffered  no  eclipse,  and  his 
intellect,  brilliant  as  a  cut  diamond,  flashed  forth 
brighter  rays  than  ever. 


127 


CHAPTER  XVIII:  The  Eagle 
in  his  Cage 

THERE  must  have  been  a  sort  of  cynical 
generosity  in  Raleigh's  attitude  toward 
those  who  had  injured  him,  otherwise  it  is 
hardly  credible  that  he  would  have  liked  to  use 
Cecil  (by  this  time  Lord  Salsbury)  as  the  medium  for 
his  constant  petitions  and  begging  of  favours. 

No  sooner  had  his  life  been  spared  than  he  was 
beseeching  for  fresh  concessions  with  eloquent  in- 
sistence. Very  little  came  of  his  requests,  yet  he 
did  not  reproach  Cecil,  and  appears  to  have  really 
retained  personal  affection  for  the  crooked  little 
man  who  had  served  him  so  ill  and  helped  in  his 
ruin  more  than  anyone  else.  Cecil  told  Lady 
Raleigh  decisively  that '  as  for  a  pardon  it  could  not 
be  done,'  but  still  Sir  Walter  continued  to  beg  with- 
out ceasing,  not  only  for  his  liberty,  but  for  more 
luxuries  and  consideration  in  the  Tower  and  for  the 
preservation  of  his  property. 

Nevertheless,  for  the  next  twelve  years  he  was  to 
be  kept  in  confinement,  languishing  in  health  if  not 
in  mind,  never  abandoning  hope  of  one  day  re- 
trieving his  fortunes. 

Once  only  during  these  twelve  years  he  enjoyed  a 
temporary  change  of  air  to  the  Fleet  on  the  occasion 
of  Royalty  visiting  the  Tower  to  witness  the  odious, 
but  then  not  unusual,  spectacle  of  a  lion  being 
worried  to  death  by  two  mastiffs. 

His  apartments  in  the  Bloody,  or  Garden,  Tower 
were  sufficiently  spacious  to  accommodate  his  wife 
and  their  children  (the  second  boy,  Carew,  being 

128 


The  Eagle  in  his  Cage 

born  soon  after  they  came)  and  their  staff  of  serv- 
ants. The  terrace  overlooking  the  river  and  wharf 
was  his  recreation  ground,  and  his  friends  and  rela- 
tions were  allowed  to  come  and  see  him,  bringing  him 
books  and  tidings  of  the  outside  world.  But  the 
place  was  damp,  being  so  close  to  the  Thames  and 
the  stagnant  water  of  the  moat.  Even  during  the 
first  years  of  his  imprisonment  Raleigh  complained 
that  the  confined  air  was  killing  him,  and  that  his 
boy  had  'lain  these  fourteen  days  next  door  to  a 
woman  sick  of  the  plague  whose  child  had  died  of 
it.'  In  1606  damp  and  cold  had  told  on  him  so 
much  that  his  doctor  gave  an  alarming  report  of 
his  health.  He  was  in  daily  danger  of  death,  one 
side  of  him  was  numb,  his  fingers  deformed  with 
rheumatism,  and  even  his  tongue  affected  so  that  it 
was  feared  he  might  lose  his  power  of  speech. 

This  brought  about  the  change  in  his  lodging 
which  his  own  prayers  had  failed  to  accomplish. 
Leave  was  granted  him  to  build  a  little  room  adja- 
cent to  the  outhouse  in  the  garden,  which  he  had  al- 
ready used  as  a  laboratory.  Here  was  now  his 
sleeping  chamber,  and  things  improved.  The  fas- 
cination of  his  personality  w^as  not  without  effect  on 
his  governors.  Both  Sir  John  Peyton  and  Sir 
George  Harvey,  his  successor  as  Lieutenant  of  the 
Tower,  did  all  they  could  to  make  his  captivity  less 
irksome.  Sir  George  frequently  invited  him  to  din- 
ner and  allowed  him  the  run  of  his  private  garden 
and  encouraged  him  in  his  chemical  experiments. 
Thus  within  the  walls  of  his  prison  Raleigh  found 
an  outlet  for  his  boundless  energy,  and  increased 
his  fame  for  posterity  by  his  literary  labours. 

129 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

Among  his  servants,  who  lodged  near  him  and 
were  in  constant  attendance  on  him,  were  those 
swarthy  Indians  whom  he  had  brought  from  Guiana 
— picturesque  figures  with  their  feathers  and  beads 
adding  colour  and  romance  within  that  abode  of 
sighs  and  groans,  shattered  hopes  and  blighted  lives. 
They  no  doubt  helped  in  the  mixing  and  brewing 
of  the  Grand  Cordial,  the  balsam  of  Guiana,  which 
gained  much  reputation  as  a  miraculous  cure  of  every 
possible  disease,  though  more  than  one  patient  is 
said  to  have  died  from  the  effects  of  it.  The  Count- 
ess of  Beaumont,  when  she  came  to  the  Tower  to  see 
the  lions,  begged,  as  she  passed  the  great  human 
*lion'  in  the  Tower  Garden,  that  he  would  give  her 
some  of  the  balsam,  and  this  lady  does  not  appear 
to  have  been  any  the  worse  for  it. 

The  time  that  Raleigh  did  not  spend  among  his 
jars  and  phials  making  chemical  and  miner alogical 
experiments,  or,  quill  in  hand,  writing  The  History 
of  the  World,  was  mostly  passed  parading  the  terrace, 
to  the  delight  of  crowds  on  the  wharf,  who  came 
from  far  and  near  to  look  at  him.  Aubrey  tells  us 
that  he  was  dressed  usually  in  a  *  velvet  cap  laced,  a 
rich  gown  and  trunk  hose,'  and  glowered  fiercely  on 
his  old  foes.  But  the  feelings  of  the  mob  toward 
Raleigh  had  undergone  a  change  and  were  no  longer 
antagonistic.  Indeed,  they  regarded  him  as  a 
celebrity  whom  it  was  worth  coming  miles  to  see. 
In  his  misfortune  he  had  become  almost  a  popular 
hero. 

On  the  appointment  of  Sir  William  Ward  to  the 
Governorship  of  the  Tower,  Raleigh's  showing  him- 
self to  the  people  was  regarded  with  suspicion.     A 

130 


The  Eagle  in  his  Cage 

brick  wall  was  built  in  front  of  the  Bloody  Tower, 
and  Ward  complained  to  Cecil,  '  Sir  Walter  Raleigh 
doth  show  himself  upon  the  wall  of  his  garden  to  the 
view  of  the  people  who  gaze  upon  him  and  he  stareth 
upon  them,  which  he  doeth  in  his  cunning  humour.' 
Under  Ward's  governorship  irritating  restrictions 
were  imposed  on  the  distinguished  prisoners,  and 
Lady  Raleigh  was  forbidden  to  drive  her  coach 
through  the  courtyard.  Raleigh  himself  was  per- 
petually under  surveillance,  and  often  brought  before 
the  Council  to  be  cross-examined.  He  was  thought 
to  have  had  some  knowledge  of  the  Gunpowder  Plot, 
and  indeed  he  was  suspected  of  complicity  in  every 
plot  that  was  going  just  then,  and  once,  for  no 
apparent  reason,  he  was  more  closely  imprisoned  for 
three  months  and  separated  from  his  wife,  who,  for 
the  time  being,  was  dismissed  from  the  Tower. 

Yet  Raleigh's  fame  grew  in  prison.  Even  in  the 
days  of  his  glittering  splendour  he  had  never  been 
more  talked  of.  He  was  regarded  almost  as  a 
magician,  and  his  Grand  Cordial  was  begged  for  from 
all  parts  of  Europe  This  concoction  consisted  of 
forty  different  herbs,  roots  and  seeds,  besides  other 
things,  macerated  in  spirits  of  wine  and  distilled; 
then  it  was  combined  with  powdered  bezoar,  stones, 
pearls,  red  coral,  deer's  horn,  ambergris,  musk, 
antimony  and  various  sorts  of  earth  and  white 
sugar.  The  Queen,  Anne  of  Denmark,  partook  of 
the  mixture  when  she  was  ill,  and  the  fact  that  it 
did  her  good  instead  of  killing  her  shows  that  she 
must  have  had  a  strong  constitution. 

This  Queen  was  full  of  sentiment  and  romance, 
and  she  was  captivated  by  the  glamour  that  hung 

131 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

over  the  King's  victim  in  the  Tower,  and  never 
wearied  of  interceding  for  him  and  urging  the  hero's 
release.  And  in  her  young  son,  *  the  hopeful  Prince 
Henry,'  Raleigh  had  another  champion  against  the 
malignant  tyranny  and  injustice  of  the  King. 

The  nation  had  never  built  higher  hopes  on  any 
heir  to  the  throne  than  on  this  boy,  who  promised, 
like  the  chivalrous  Black  Prince  and  like  the  Prince 
Arthur  of  later  times,  to  be  a  wise  and  enlightened 
sovereign  when  his  turn  should  come  to  reign,  but 
who  was  cut  off  in  the  promise  of  his  youth  before 
that  turn  came. 

Henry,  Prince  of  Wales,  noble,  generous  and 
tolerant,  had  convinced  himself  that  Raleigh  had 
been  wrongly  condemned.  After  weighing  all  the 
evidence  for  and  against  him  and  following  his  trial 
with  the  keenest  intelligence,  he  joined  with  his 
mother  in  sparing  no  efforts  to  get  him  released. 
He  sat  at  the  feet  of  the  great  prisoner,  hung  on  his 
lips  and  believed  in  him  as  in  an  oracle  of  wisdom 
and  learning.  He  sometimes  expressed  himself  with 
hot  indignation  about  his  father's  treatment  of  his 
most  illustrious  subject,^  and  was  determined  that 
he  would  not  allow  himself  and  his  sister  to  be 
married  off  to  a  daughter  and  son  of  the  Spanish  and 
Catholic  Duke  of  Savoy  without  seeking  Raleigh's 
counsel.  Thus  the  prisoner,  lost  as  he  was  to  the 
world,  was  given  an  opportunity  of  asserting  in- 
directly his  authority  in  public  affairs  and  showing 
that  his  old  animus  against  Spain  was  still  alive. 
He  penned  two  masterly  treatises  for  the  young 

**No  king  but  my  father  would  keep  such  a  bird  in  a  cage,'  he  is 
reported  to  have  said. 

132 


The  Eagle  in  his  Cage 

Prince's  guidance,  full  of  hostility  to  the  idea  of 
the  proposed  Spanish  marriages,  and  advocating  the 
alliance  of  Princess  Elizabeth  with  the  Protestant 
Prince  Palatine,  Frederic. 

It  was  a  risky  attitude  to  take  up,  being  in  exact 
opposition  to  the  King's  view,  but  probably  by  this 
time  Raleigh  had  given  up  expecting  any  favour 
from  the  King  and  based  all  his  hopes  on  the  heir  to 
the  throne.  The  Prince  further  consulted  him  on 
shipbuilding  and  Sir  Walter  produced  for  his  in- 
struction 'The  discourse  of  the  invention  of  ships, 
observations  concerning  the  Royal  Navy  and  sea 
service,'  with  which  the  Prince  was  delighted. 

Undaunted  by  the  ill-success  of  his  efforts  to  se- 
cure Raleigh's  release.  Prince  Henry  next  attempted 
to  get  the  Sherborne  estates  taken  away  from 
Carr  and  restored  to  Raleigh.  He  prevailed  on  his 
father  indeed  to  buy  t-hem  back  for  £20,000  and 
grant  them  to  himself,  but  before  he  could  convey 
the  estate  to  his  mentor  he  was  taken  ill  with  the 
fever  of  which  he  died. 

Six  months  before  Cecil's  death  had  occurred,  and 
if  Raleigh  made  no  pretence  of  lamenting  it,  or  of 
respecting  the  memory  of  the  man  who  had  been 
the  chief  worker  of  his  ruin,  the  removal  of  Lord 
Salsbury  from  the  scene  meant  that  a  vague  hope 
of  gaining  his  liberty  through  his  false  friend's 
influence  was  gone.  But  the  young  Prince's  death 
was  a  far  more  serious  loss  not  only  to  Raleigh's 
hopes,  but  to  those  of  the  whole  nation. 

The  life  of  the  well-beloved  Prince  was  hanging 
on  a  thread  when  one  mild  November  evening  there 
appeared  above  the  gables  and  housetops  of  the 

133 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

city  a  lunar  rainbow  in  the  grey  sky,  said  to  be  an 
omen  of  evil.  This  sign  in  the  heavens  convinced 
the  people  that  the  Prince,  whose  forwardness  in 
wisdom  had  so  won  their  love  and  esteem,  could  not 
recover.  The  augury  proved  a  true  one,  for  though 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  at  the  heart-broken  Queen's 
request,  mixed  a  special  dose  of  the  Grand  Cordial 
and  sent  it  to  the  dying  boy,  he  only  slightly  rallied, 
and  passed  away  that  night.  There  were  rumours 
of  poison,  obviously  without  foundation.  But  the 
Queen's  faith  in  Raleigh  was  implicit,  and  he  had 
told  her  that  his  remedy  was  proof  against  every- 
thing except  poison,  so  when  her  son  died  she  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  he  had  been  poisoned. 

For  Raleigh  the  life  of  the  Prince  was  of  supreme 
importance,  and  his  death  an  unspeakable  blow. 
His  son  had  wrung  from  the  King  a  promise  that 
Raleigh  was  to  be  pardoned  and  set  at  liberty  before 
the  coming  Christmas,  but  his  dying  before  that  date 
ended  all  prospects  of  freedom,  at  any  rate  for  several 
years  to  come.  More  closely  than  ever  were  the 
mighty  gates  of  the  Tower  closed  on  him  and  his 
fellow-prisoners,  among  whom  were  Hariot  the 
mathematician;  Sir  Thomas  Overbury,  there  to 
meet  a  tragic  fate;  poor,  vacillating,  weak-minded 
Cobham;  the  Earl  of  Northumberland,  full  of 
gallantry  and  learning;  and  fair  Arabella  Stuart,  the 
most  pitiful  figure  of  all  that  hapless  company, 
rousing  the  dismal  echoes  with  her  weeping  and  mad 
laughter. 


134 


CHAPTER  XIX:  'The  History 
of  the  TVorW 

IT  was  well  for  posterity  that  Sir  Walter  Raleigh 
employed  the  time  that  hung  heavy  on  his 
hands  in  the  Tower  in  more  ways  besides 
dabbling  in  chemistry  and  brewing  cordials.  To 
his  imprisonment  we  owe  the  colossal  fragment  of  his 
History  of  the  World,  which  is  such  a  valuable  con- 
tribution to  English  literature.  ^  Vast  in  conception, 
the  whole  had  been  discussed  in  detail  with  Prince 
Henry,  and  was  to  have  been  dedicated  to  him  when 
finished.  The  author  ends  the  first  part  with  an 
eloquent  eulogy  of  his  young  patron,  who,  if  he  had 
lived  to  succeed  his  father,  would  have  raised  Raleigh 
again  to  a  position  of  prosperity  and  grandeur. 

The  story  goes  that  the  bookseller  who  published 
the  first  edition  in  1614  told  Raleigh  that  he  should 
be  a  loser  by  it,  whereupon  Sir  Walter,  in  a  passion, 
said  that  *  since  the  world  did  not  understand  it, 
they  should  not  have  his  second  part,  which  he  took 
and  threw  into  the  fire,  and  burnt  before  his  face.' 
But  it  is  more  likely  that  this  relates  to  other  trea- 
tises and  manuscripts  which  he  is  known  to  have 
written  about  the  same  period.     The  History,  as  far 

^Oliver  Cromwell  recommended  it  to  his  son  Richard.  Hampden 
was  its  zealous  student  and  admirer.  Nonconformists  and  Puritans 
vied  with  churchmen  and  cavaliers  in  extolling  it.  Montrose  read 
it  greedily  as  a  boy  and  was  inspired  by  its  great  deeds  and  records 
of  past  heroes.  The  1614  edition  was  found  in  the  knapsack  of  the 
Queen  of  Hearts,  Princess  Elizabeth,  when  her  luggage  was  captured 
at  Prague  by  the  Spaniards  in  1620,  showing  that  Raleigh's  History 
of  the  World  had  been  her  travelling  companion, 

135 


Sir  TTalter  Raleigh 

j  as  it  goes,  is  one  of  the  three  greatest  works  of  genius 

/  produced  in  prison,  the  other  two  being  Don  Quixote, 

I  and  Bunyan's  Pilgrim^ s  Progress. 

'  The  writer  acknowledges  in  his  preface  the 
stupendous  magnitude  of  the  undertaking  attempted 
in  the  evening  of  a  tempestuous  Hfe  (he  was  59 
when  he  began  the  work),  and  then  gives  a  pre- 
liminary review  of  his  subject,  which  he  sets  forth 
in  graceful  and  dignified  style.  He  depicts  history 
as  a  whole,  beginning  with  the  creation,  giving 
illustrations,  from  the  times  of  Pharaoh  down  to 
those  of  the  Tudors,  to  show  God's  judgments  on 
kings  and  the  retribution  which  follows  bloodshed. 
The  whole  of  the  preface  enforces  the  lesson  of  the 
responsibility  of  rulers,  and  attacks  the  principle  of 
the  Divinity  of  Monarchs,  for  which  James  lived  to 
promulgate  and  for  which  his  son,  Charles  Stuart, 
lost  his  head.  Raleigh  holds  up  to  reprobation 
Henry  VH  and  Henry  VIII  as  cruel  monsters; 
throughout  he  is  down  on  the  tyranny  of  kings,  and 
shows  how  Divine  Justice  is  meted  out  in  the  end 
to  the  most  powerful  and  exalted  who  have  treated 
the  people  cruelly  and  unfairly.  And  yet  he  inter- 
lards his  criticism  of  James's  Tudor  forerunners 
with  the  grossest  flattery  of  the  reigning  boor,  declar- 
ing that  he  exceeds  by  many  degrees  all  who  have 
gone  before  him,  in  divine  as  v/ell  as  human  under- 
standing. Nevertheless,  James  took  personal  um- 
brage at  the  thrusts  at  monarchy,  and  condemned 
the  book  as  being  *too  saucy  in  the  censuring  of 
princes.' 

In  spite  of  pointing  out  that  the  supreme  end 
of  good  government  must  be  the  happiness  of  the 

136 


The  History  of  the  World 

governed,  Raleigh  does  not  conceal  his  detestation 
of  democracy,  or  what  was  then  understood  by 
democracy.  In  this  respect  he  was  the  super-man 
who  despises  and  mistrusts  the  common  herd.  He 
compares  the  populace  with  'barking  dogs,'  and 
avers  that  there  is  nothing  in  any  state  so  terrible 
as  *a  powerful  and  authorised  ignorance.' 

He  never  swerved  from  his  ideal  that  the  chosen 
few  of  a  strong  and  powerful  race  were  privileged 
to  govern  the  many  according  to  their  own  standard 
of  righteousness  to  promote  the  well-being  of  all. 
He  could  be  gracious  to  those  beneath  him  as  long 
as  they  were  absolutely  submissive  to  his  will,  and 
was  a  kind  master  to  his  servants,  especially  to  the 
Indians,  who  venerated  and  adored  him,  but  politi- 
cally he  scorned  and  hated  the  *  common  people.' 

Among  his  fellow-prisoners  were  scholars  who 
doubtless  rendered  Raleigh  valuable  assistance  in 
his  work.  There  was  Hariot,  who  had  been  his 
right  hand  in  brighter  days  at  Durham  House;  there 
was  Serjeant  Hoskins,  the  man  of  letters,  poet  and 
polished  stylist;  the  scholarly  and  cultured  Nor- 
thumberland, and  others.  Ben  Jonson,  from  with- 
out the  prison  walls,  contributed  the  introductory 
verses,  but  for  all  this  the  work  is  wholly  and  char- 
acteristically Raleigh's.  It  is  full  of  little  sidelights 
on  his  own  personal  history.  It  has  here  and  there 
the  wit  and  charm  and  apt  allusion  which  are  the  salt 
of  history  and  make  the  'dry est  bones'  alive. 

He  must  have  known  himself  that  he  could  never 
live  to  finish  the  work  on  the  gigantic  scale  he  had 
planned.  The  first  six  books,  beginning  with  the 
creation,  only  get  as  far  as  the  second  Macedonian 

137 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

War,  and  it  was  impossible  that  he  could  ever  have 
written  a  history  of  the  whole  world  down  to  his 
own  day  at  such  detailed  length — still  it  is  and  will 
ever  remain  a  work  of  gorgeous  promise  and  of  more 
significance  in  its  majestic  design  than  many  a  finished 
masterpiece.  The  following  passages  are  a  handful 
of  treasure  gathered  at  random  from  its  pages: 

'  For  myself  if  conscience  have  in  anything  served 
my  country  and  prized  it  before  my  private,  the 
general  acceptation  can  yield  me  no  other  profit  at 
this  time  than  doth  a  fair  sunshine  day  to  a  seaman 
after  shipwreck,  and  the  contrary  no  other  harm 
than  an  outrageous  tempest  after  the  port  attained. 
I  know  that  I  lost  the  love  of  many  for  my  fidelity 
towards  her  (Queen  Elizabeth)  whom  I  must  still 
honour  in  the  dust  ...  of  those  that  did  it  and 
by  what  device  they  did  it.  He  that  is  the  Supreme 
Judge  of  all  the  world  hath  taken  the  account.  So 
that  of  this  kind  of  suffering  I  must  say  with  Seneca, 
Malo  opino  bene  parta  delectat.  So  for  other  men, 
if  there  be  any  that  have  made  themselves  fathers 
of  that  fame  which  have  been  begotten  of  them, 
I  can  neither  envy  such  their  purchased  glory,  nor 
much  lament  my  own  mishap  in  that  kind,  but 
content  myself  to  say  with  Virgil,  Sic  vos  non  vobes 
in  many  particulars. 

AlMBITION   AND    GlORY 

'If  we  seek  a  reason  of  the  succession  and  con- 
tinuance of  the  boundless  ambition  in  mortal  men, 
we  may  add  that  the  kings  and  princes  of  the 
world  have  always  laid  before  them  the  actions 
but  not  the  ends  of  those  great  ones  which  preceded 

138 


The  History  of  the  Tf^orld 

them.  They  are  always  transported  with  the  glory 
of  the  one,  but  they  never  mind  the  misery  of  the 
other  till  they  find  the  experience  in  themselves. 
They  neglect  the  advice  of  God  while  they  enjoy 
life  or  hope:  but  they  follow  the  counsel  of  Death 
upon  his  first  approach.  ^ 

Fame 

*  To  these  undertakings  the  greatest  Lords  of  the 
world  have  been  stirred  up  rather  by  the  desire  of 
fame,  which  plougheth  up  the  air  and  soweth  in  the 
winds,  than  by  the  affection  of  bearing  rule,  which 
draweth  after  it  so  much  vexation  and  so  many  cares, 
and  that  this  is  true  the  good  advice  of  Cineas  to 
Pyrrhus  proves.  And  certainly  as  fame  hath  often 
been  dangerous  to  the  living,  so  is  it  to  the  dead 
no  good  at  all  because  separate  from  knowledge. 
Which,  were  it  obtained,  and  the  extreme  ill  bargain 
of  buying  this  lasting  discourse  understood  by  them 
which  are  dissolved,  they  themselves  would  then 
rather  have  wished  to  have  stolen  out  of  the  world 
without  noise  than  to  be  put  in  mind  that  they 
have  purchased  the  report  of  their  actions  in  the 
world  by  rapine,  oppression  and  cruelty,  by  giving 
in  spoil  the  innocent  and  labouring  soul  to  the  idle 
and  insolent,  and  by  having  emptied  the  cities  of  the 
world  of  their  ancient  inhabitants  and  filled  them 
again  with  so  many  and  so  variable  sorrows. 

Great  Men 

*  There  are  some  things  else,  you  will  say,  and  of 
greater  regard  than  gathering  of  riches,  such  as  the 

1  History  of  the  World,  Bk.,  V.  ch.  vi. 
1J9 


Sir  W^alter  Raleigh 

reverend  respect  that  is  held  of  great  men  and  the 
honour  done  unto  him  by  all  sorts  of  people.  And 
it  is  true  indeed  provided  that  an  inward  love  for 
their  justice  and  piety  accompany  the  outward 
worship  given  to  their  places  and  power,  without 
which  what  is  the  applause  of  the  multitude  but  as 
the  outcry  of  a  herd  of  animals,  who,  without  the 
knowledge  of  any  true  cause,  please  themselves  with 
the  noise  they  make,  for  seeing  it  is  a  thing  exceed- 
ing rare  to  distinguish  virtue  and  fortune,  the  most 
impious  if  prosperous  have  ever  been  applauded, 
the  most  virtuous  if  unprosperous  have  ever  been 
despised. 

God 

'There  is  not  anything  in  this  world  of  more 
eflScacy  and  force  to  allure  and  draw  to  it  the  hearts 
of  men  than  God  which  is  the  summum  honum.  He 
is  carefully  desired  and  continually  sought  for  of  all 
creatures,  for  all  regard  Him  as  their  last  end  and 
refuge.  Light  things  apply  themselves  upwards, 
heavy  things  downwards,  the  heavens  to  revolution, 
the  herbs  to  flowers,  trees  to  bear  fruit,  beasts  to 
preserve  their  kind,  and  man  to  seeking  his  tran- 
quility and  everlasting  glory.  But  inasmuch  as  God 
is  of  so  high  a  nature  that  the  sense  of  and  under- 
standing of  man  cannot  concern  it,  every  man 
directly  turns  himself  to  that  place  where  He 
leaves  some  print  of  this  power  and  declares  some 
sign  of  His  existence  and  to  such  persons  to  whom 
he  seemeth  more  especially  to  have .  revealed 
Himself. 


140 


The  History  of  the  IVorld 

*God  Whom  the  wisest  men  acknowledge  to  be 
a  Power  ineffable  and  virtue  infinite;  an  Under- 
standing which  itself  can  only  comprehend;  an 
essence  eternal  and  spiritual  of  absolute  pureness 
and  simplicity;  was  and  is  pleased  to  make  Himself 
known  by  the  work  of  the  world  in  the  wonderful 
magnitude  whereof  (all  which  he  embraceth,  filleth 
and  sustaineth)  we  behold  the  image  of  that  glory 
which  cannot  be  measured,  and  withal  that  One  and 
yet  universal  Nature  which  cannot  be  defined.  In 
the  glorious  lights  of  heaven  we  perceive  a  shadow 
of  His  Divine  Countenance,  in  His  merciful  pro- 
vision for  all  that  live.  His  manifold  goodness, 
and  lastly,  in  creating  and  making  existent  the 
world  universal  by  the  absolute  art  of  his  own  word. 
His  power  and  Almightiness  which  power,  light, 
virtue,  wisdom,  and  goodness  being  all  but  attributes 
of  One  simple  essence  and  One  God  we  in  all  admire 
and  in  part  discern,  in  the  disposition,  order  and 
variety  of  celestial  and  terrestrial  bodies,  terrestrial 
in  their  strange  and  manifold  diversities,  celestial 
in  their  beauty  and  magnitude  which  in  their  con- 
tinual and  contrary  motions  are  neither  repugnant, 
intermixed  nor  confounded.  By  these  potent  effects 
we  approach  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Omnipotent 
Cause  and  by  these  motions  their  Almighty  Ruler.' 


141 


CHAPTER  XX:  Raleigh 
Released 

THROUGH  all  his  manifold  misfortunes, 
disappointments  and  sorrow,  Raleigh  never 
lost  sight  of  the  one  great  inspiration  of  his 
life.  The  colonial  expansion  and  ascendancy  of 
England  over-seas  was  always  nearest  his  heart,  a 
dream  that  he  dreamed  as  ceaselessly  in  prison  as  he 
had  done  when  he  was  at  liberty  to  try  and  put  it 
into  execution. 

The  thought  of  past  failures  had  no  power  to 
lessen  his  ambition.  His  faith  in  the  sources  of 
potential  wealth  which  might  accrue  to  the  British 
Empire  through  the  colonization  of  Virginia  and 
Guiana  remained  unshaken.  So  long  ago  as  his 
return  from  Cadiz  news  had  reached  him  that  the 
Indians  on  the  coast  of  Guiana  had  been  inquiring 
pathetically  why  the  great  White  Chief,  who  had 
promised  to  protect  them  against  the  Spaniards, 
did  not  come  back.  In  prison  he  heard  that 
the  Spanish  invaders  were  busy  endeavouring  to 
establish  a  colony  on  the  Orinoco,  where  they  in- 
tended to  build  an  extensive  city  to  serve  as  their 
head-quarters  when  sending  out  reconnoitring  ex- 
peditions to  Guiana — Raleigh's  land  of  golden 
promise.  Moved  by  these  rumours,  Raleigh  re- 
newed his  desperate  appeals  to  those  in  authority  to 
prevent  Spain  stealing  a  march  on  England  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Atlantic.  He  had  managed  to  enlist 
Prince  Henry's  interest  in  the  Virginian  plantation, 
and  a  new  Charter  had  been  granted  in  1609  to  the 
'Company  of  Adventurers  and  Planters  of  the  Colony 

142 


Raleigh  Released 

of  Virginia/  which  led  to  the  establishment  of  a 
permanent  English  settlement  in  North  America. 
Raleigh  in  prison  reaped  no  benefit  therefrom  save 
the  lasting  posthumous  honour  of  having  converted 
the  great  northern  continent  into  an  English-speak- 
ing country.  Thus  the  idea  that  he  had  upheld  for 
thirty  years,  in  the  teeth^of  opposition  and  reverses, 
triumphed,  the  idea  that  the  continent  of  America 
was  by  *  God's  providence  reserved  for  England.' 

With  regard  to  Guiana  gold  was  to  be  the  magnet 
to  draw  money  from  capitalists;  the  prospect  of 
getting  rich  quickly  was  to  be  the  bait.  Raleigh,  in 
1611,  earnestly  besought  the  Queen  to  give  her 
patronage  to  an  expedition  and  to  use  her  influence 
with  King  James  to  get  him  released  so  that  he 
might  conduct  it  in  person.  But  although  Win  wood, 
the  secretary  who  had  succeeded  Cecil,  was  favour- 
able to  the  scheme,  it  came  to  nothing.  Over  and 
over  again  he  periodically  entreated,  only  to  be  each 
time  refused.  Even  when  he  abandoned  the  notion 
of  going  himself,  and  offered  to  send  Kemys  as 
his  deputy,  he  failed  to  obtain  leave  or  sufiicient 
support  for  a  large  undertaking.  Small  expeditions 
he  managed  to  dispatch,  and  these  kept  Guiana 
from  being  forgotten  by  the  public.  The  stories  of 
chiefs  who  glittered  from  head  to  foot  with  gold 
dust;  of  Manoa,  the  magic  city,  not  yet  discovered; 
of  mountains  shining  with  gems,  were  still  circulated 
to  inflame  the  imagination  and  excite  the  greed  of 
Raleigh's  fellow-countrymen.  And  at  last  those  in 
high  places  became  infected  with  the  germs  of  the 
gold  fever  which  the  grand  old  adventurer  cultivated 
so  assiduously  within  the  walls  of  his  prison.     George 

143 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

Villiers,  afterward  Duke  of  Buckingham,  a  new 
and  more  splendid  favourite  than  the  infamous 
Carr  (who  with  his  lady  and  fellow- worker  in 
w^ickedness,  were  now  prisoners  too  in  the  Tower) ,  en- 
thralled with  the  prospect  of  acquiring  fabulous  and 
undreamed  of  riches,  accepted  a  bribe  to  back  the 
enterprise. 

Seven  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  in  hard  cash 
bought  the  influence  of  such  inestimable  importance 
to  Raleigh,  and  in  1615  Villiers  and  his  party  set 
to  work  to  pick  the  lock  of  Raleigh's  prison.  The 
favourite  obtained  a  warrant  from  the  King,  dated 
March  19th,  which  permitted  the  illustrious  prisoner 
to  go  abroad  to  make  preparations  for  his  voyage. 

Then  the  doors  of  his  prison  swung  back  and, 
after  twelve  years,  Raleigh,  grey-haired  and  broken 
down  in  body,  was  a  free  though  not  a  pardoned  man. 
It  is  hardly  an  exaggeration  to  say  that  the  eyes  of 
Europe  were  fixed  on  that  bent  and  courageous 
figure  as  it  emerged  from  the  shadows  of  the  Tower 
into  the  broad  light  of  day.  Spain  knew  that  her 
bitterest  enemy  was  again  at  large;  France  saw  in 
him  a  friend  worth  winning;  and  smaller  States, 
such  as  Denmark  and  Savoy,  had  their  own  reasons 
for  regarding  with  interest  the  liberated  prisoner 
who  was  a  force  to  be  reckoned  with.  So  the  man 
who  had  been  the  victim  of  Cecil's  jealousy,  How- 
ard's diabolical  hate,  and  King  James's  cowardice, 
stepped  out  of  his  prison. 

It  is  possible  to  imagine  his  feelings  as  he  took  a 
tour  of  the  town  that  he  had  not  seen  for  twelve 
years,  and  perhaps  noted  some  changes  and  enjoyed 
the  old  familiar  sights. 

144 


Raleigh  Released 

How  he  must  have  enjoyed  the  keen  March  winds 
blowing  invigoratingly  on  his  brow  aching  from 
over-study  and  thought;  how  good  once  more  to 
stretch  his  Kmbs,  stiff  from  long  confinement,  in 
swift  walks  through  London's  merry  streets  and 
along  the  river  banks.  He  must  have  wondered 
at  the  growth  and  increased  beauty  of  the  capital; 
at  the  Banqueting  Hall  which  Inigo  Jones  had  put 
up  in  Whitehall  (as  it  stands  to-day);  at  the  new 
front  in  the  Strand  to  his  old  palace,  Durham 
House.  Architecturally  speaking,  London  was  at 
its  zenith  in  those  early  Stuart  days,  with  its  vistas 
of  gables  and  gardens  and  stately  towers  and  spires. 

Dress  then  was  beautiful  too,  the  simplest  citizen 
in  his  russet  fustian  being  as  artistically  clad  as 
the  lords  of  the  land  in  their  velvet  doublets  and 
ruffs  of  fine  lace.  Sir  Walter,  no  doubt,  was  arrayed 
in  all  his  wonted  bravery^  of  pearl-hatbands, 
blazing  jewels,  silk  slashing  and  trunk  hose  when 
he  took  his  first  walk  abroad  in  the  bright  chill  sun- 
light of  March  after  his  long  sojourn  among  the 
shadows  and  gloomy  associations  of  the  Tower. 

Scarcely  a  week  after  he  had  left  it  he  was  en- 
grossed in  preparations  for  the  coming  voyage  and 
superintending  the  building  of  a  ship,  aptly  named 
'Destiny.' 

1  When  he  was  arrested  in  1603,  he  was  carrying  £4000  in  jewels 
on  his  bosom.  When  again  in  1618  he  was  taken  prisoner  his  pockets 
were  found  full  of  the  diamonds  and  jacinths  which  he  had  wrenched 
off  his  person.  His  letters  abound  with  testimony  of  his  passion  for 
jewels,  velvets  and  emdroidered  damasks. 


145 


CHAPTER  XXI:    Guiana 
Again 

RALEIGH  had  always  been  rather  a  gam- 
bler and  he  now  cheerfully  staked  every 
penny  of  his  own  and  his  wife's  wrecked 
fortunes  on  his  last  great  venture. 

Afterward  he  himself  marvelled  that  he  could 
have  gone  in  search  of  a  chimera  with  such  blind 
confidence  of  success.  The  mine  on  the  Orinoco 
which  was  to  make  everyone  concerned  in  the 
Guiana  expedition  rich,  had  never  been  seen  by 
Raleigh,  but  it  was  believed  that  Kemys  had  been 
shown  it  by  an  Indian  potentate  years  before. 
Yet  on  the  possible  existence  of  this  mine  Raleigh 
readily  risked  everything.  His  enthusiasm  and 
zeal  became  contagious.  Youths  of  rank  and  men 
of  distinction  volunteered  to  accompany  him  in 
large  numbers.  But  unhappily  the  majority  of  his 
followers  were  not  made  of  the  right  stuff  to  bear 
great  hardships  gallantly  and  to  go  forward  with 
unflinching  purpose  to  their  goal — 'drunkards  and 
blasphemers,'  so  they  were  described  to  be  for  the 
most  part,  and  their  relatives  at  home  were  glad  to 
be  rid  of  them.  ^ 

1  'What  wonder  is  it  that  I  failed,  being  followed  by  a  company 
of  volunteers  who  for  the  most  part  had  neither  seen  the  sea  nor 
the  wars,  who,  some  forty  gentlemen  excepted,  were  the  very 
scum  of  the  world.  Drunkards  and  Blasphemers  and  such  others 
as  their  friends,  fathers  and  brothers  thought  it  an  exceeding  good 
gain  to  be  discharged  of  them  with  the  hazard  of  some  45  or  50 
pounds,  knowing  they  could  not  have  lived  a  whole  year  so  cheap 
at  home.' — Sir  Walter  Raleigh  in  his  Apology  Jot  the  Second 
Voyage  to  Guiana. 

146 


Guiana  Again 

It  must  be  understood  that  one  of  the  greatest 
changes  that  had  taken  place  during  Raleigh's 
twelve  years  of  imprisonment  was  the  change  in  the 
relations  between  England  and  Spain.  Elizabeth 
had  proudly  disdained  Spanish  patronage  in  her 
early  days  when  the  nation  was  divided  and  her 
throne  uncertain.  When  her  position  became  as- 
sured, and  with  the  help  of  her  ministers — so  wisely 
chosen— and  her  navy,  she  had  made  England  the 
most  powerful  and  respected  of  nations,  she  could 
afford  to  snap  her  fingers  at  the  much  vaunted 
power  of  Spain.  But  James's  one  desire  was  to  be 
at  peace  with  his  predecessor's  old  enemy;  and 
Raleigh,  on  coming  out  of  the  Tower,  found  that 
truckling  to  Spain  was  the  order  of  the  day.  The 
Spanish  Ambassador,  Diego  Sarmiento,  Count  of 
Gondomar,  was  a  persona  grata  at  the  court,  which 
was  now  forbidden  ground  to  Raleigh.  Thus 
Gondomar  was  admitted  to  the  King's  Privy  Council, 
and  even  to  his  private  chamber,  a  mark  of  intimacy 
shown  to  a  Spaniard  unheard  of  before,  and  one 
calculated  to  horrify  those  who  approved  of  Queen 
Elizabeth's  policy. 

No  wonder  that  the  Spanish  Ambassador,  enjoy- 
ing in  such  full  measure  the  confidence  of  James, 
found  it  no  difficult  matter  to  learn  from  him  the 
whole  programme  that  Raleigh  had  drawn  up  of 
his  scheme  and  laid  before  His  Majesty,  who  had 
given  his  word  of  honour  that  it  should  be  kept 
secret.  Gondomar  was  not  the  ordinary  Spanish 
grandee,  but  a  man  whose  diplomacy  was  so  deep 
and  cunning  that  he  could  play  the  coarse  buffoon 
to  pander  to  the   monarch's   taste   for  coarseness, 

147 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

while  all  the  time  he  was  hoodwinking  him  and 
getting  the  King  to  play  into  his  hands.  Gondomar 
kept  vigilant  watch  on  all  Raleigh's  preparations. 
One  month  after  the  latter's  release  in  April  1616, 
he  begged  for  leave  of  absence,  in  order  to  go  back 
to  Spain  to  confer  with  King  Philip  in  person  on 
English  affairs,  especially  on  'the  formation  of 
another  company  for  Guiana  and  the  River  Orinoco 
and  the  prime  promoter  and  originator  of  which  is 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  a  great  seaman  who  took  man^^ 
prizes  in  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  who 
first  colonized  Virginia.'  Gondomar  goes  on  to 
tell  Philip  that  Raleigh  '  sails  in  October  with  six  or 
eight  ships  of  200  to  500  tons,  some  belonging  to 
himself,  some  to  his  companions,  all  well  provided. 
He  will  also  take  launches  in  which  to  ascend  the 
Orinoco;  he  is  trying  to  get  ships  of  very  light  draught 
to  take  them  as  high  up  the  river  as  possible.  He 
has  already  been  in  the  country,  and  assures  people 
that  he  knows  of  a  mine  that  will  serve  all  England 
with  gold. ' 

The  reception  of  this  information  in  Spain  was 
immediately  followed  by  orders  for  an  increase  in 
the  Spanish  navy,  for  Gondomar  declared  that 
Raleigh  was  making  the  search  for  a  mine  a  mere 
excuse  to  injure  the  alliance  between  Spain  and 
England  by  carrying  on  a  piratical  war  against 
Philip. 

Perhaps  there  were  some  grounds  for  Gondomar's 
suspicions.  Raleigh  represented  the  old  tradition 
of  Elizabeth's  sea  captains  that  Spain  was  to  be 
flouted  and  crushed  whenever  occasion  offered, 
either  at  sea  or  on  land.     Any  idea  of  a  Spanish 

148 


Guiana  Again 

alliance  was  detestable  to  him,  and  his  chief  article 
of  faith  was  a  belief  that  Englishmen  alone  had  a 
right  to  set  foot  in  Virginia  and  Guiana.  Raleigh 
found  the  greatest  support  for  his  expedition  in 
what  remained  of  the  anti-Spanish  faction,  and 
those  who  accompanied  him  were  not  likely  to  be 
too  gentle  and  polite  toward  the  Spaniard  when 
they  came  across  him  poaching  on  their  colonial 
preserves.  In  spite  of  James  pledging  'his  hand, 
word  and  faith'  to  Gondomar  that,  if  the  Spaniards 
were  in  any  way  interfered  with,  Raleigh  should 
pay  for  it  with  his  life,  it  was  wellnigh  inevitable 
that,  in  such  circumstances,  there  should  be  conflict 
between  the  two  races. 

It  was  even  suggested  that  a  blow  should  be 
struck  at  Spanish  interests  in  Europe  by  Raleigh's 
ships.  Rich  Genoa,  always  on  the  side  of  Spain, 
was  to  be  seized  and  gutted  of  its  wealth.  The 
King  himself  did  not  frown  on  this  project  when  it 
came  to  his  ears,  yet  the  plan  could  never  have  been 
serious,  and  was  soon  abandoned.  Nevertheless, 
the  adventure  of  sacking  Genoa  would  have  been 
one  after  Raleigh's  own  heart  and  akin  to  those 
privateering  successes  for  which  of  old  he  had  won 
such  renown,  and  which  he  had  managed  so  skilfully 
to  combine  with  more  legitimate  enterprises.  It 
is  said  that  before  he  started  he  held  conference  with 
*some  great  lords  [one  of  whom  was  Lord  Bacon] 
who  told  him  they  doubted  he  would  be  prizing  if 
he  could  do  it  handsomely.'  *Yea,'  saith  he, 
'if  I  can  light  right  on  the  plate  fleet,  you  will 
think  I  were  mad  if  I  should  refuse  it. '  To  which 
they  answered,  *Why,  then,  you  will  be  a  pirate.' 

149 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

*Tusli,'  quoth  he,  ^my  Lord,  did  you  ever  hear  of 
anyone  who  was  accounted  a  pirate  for  taking 
millions  ? ' 

A  retort  very  much  to  the  point  on  the  part  of 
Raleigh,  we  cannot  help  thinking.  Yet  though  he 
might  have  piratical  intentions  by  the  way,  he  was 
absolutely  sincere  and  firm  of  purpose  about  the 
main  issue.  The  commission,  which  licensed  him  to 
voyage  in  those  parts  of  America  possessed  by 
savage  tribes  and  to  bring  home  *  profitable  com- 
modities,' was  signed  in  August  1616.  In  other 
words,  he  was  to  work  gold  mines  and  bring  home 
gold;  no  other  commodity  was  meant. 

By  the  following  March,  Raleigh's  ships  were  in 
the  Thames,  ready  to  sail.  It  was  reported  to  Spain 
by  her  spies  that  there  were  soldiers  as  well  as 
sailors  on  board,  also  arms  and  ammunition.  What 
were  these  for,  it  was  asked,  if  the  Spaniards  were 
not  to  be  assailed  or  their  territory  encroached 
upon?  Gondomar  was  not  wrong  when  he  assured 
King  Philip  that  such  a  large  armed  force  must 
entail  fighting.  He  offered  Spanish  protection  to 
Raleigh  in  working  the  mine,  if  he  would  consent 
to  go  with  only  two  ships  and  no  military  force. 

Naturally,  Raleigh  refused  to  be  so  confiding  in 
Spanish  honour,  and  it  suited  all  parties  in  England 
that  he  should  go  in  full  force,  strongly  equipped, 
and  then  to  wait  to  see  the  course  of  events  on 
his  return  before  exalting  or  condemning  him. 
So  the  man  of  resolute  purpose,  absorbed  in  his 
dreams  of  El  Dorado  ever  floating  before  his  eyes, 
was  regarded  as  a  pawn  in  the  game  of  European 
diplomacy.      Commander-in-Chief    that    he    was, 

150 


1 


Guiana  Again 

holding  the  King's  commission,  with  power  to  mete 
out  life  and  death  to  his  subjects  at  his  own  dis- 
cretion, Raleigh  was  still  an  unpardoned  man. 
He  was  leaving  England,  as  it  were,  with  the  halter 
round  his  neck.  With  the  expenditure  of  a  little 
more  money  he  might  have  purchased  his  pardon, 
but  not  a  penny  more  could  he  collect,  and  he 
was  advised  by  such  a  great  lord  of  legal  acumen 
as  Bacon  that  his  commission  amounted  to  a 
pardon  in  itself.  Thus  he  held  his  life  at  the  King's 
pleasure  when  he  set  sail  on  that  last  disastrous 
voyage. 

Troubles  and  hindrances  of  all  kinds  occurred 
from  the  outset.  Although  he  left  the  Thames 
early  in  April  for  Plymouth,  it  was  not  till  the 
middle  of  August  that  the  real  start  was  made 
from  Cork,  where  Raleigh  met  Lord  Boyle,  to  whom 
long  ago  he  had  sold  his  vast  Irish  estates.  After 
seven  wearisome  wind-bound  weeks  in  Cork  harbour 
the  fleet  at  last  got  out  to  sea  again  on  August  19th. 
The  Canaries  were  reached  by  September,  and  the 
ships  anchored  at  Lanzarote  on  a  Sunday.  The 
natives  had  been  visited  by  an  invasion  of  Barbary 
pirates,  and  mistook  the  English  fleet  for  Turkish 
ships.  They  fell  on  a  party  which  had  disembarked 
to  forage  for  provisions,  and  killed  or  wounded 
several.  Raleigh  dared  not  permit  the  English- 
men to  retaliate  and  avenge  their  comrades,  and 
quenched  their  eagerness  for  hostilities  by  leav- 
ing the  island.  He  knew  that  his  every  move- 
ment was  being  watched  by  private  enemies,  and 
that  a  skirmish  with  these  people  would  be  pounced 
on  as  a  violation  of  his  promise  not  to  injure  any  of 

151 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

the  King  of  Spain's  dominions.  Yet  in  spite  of  his 
restraint,  one  of  his  captains,  Bailey  by  name,  took 
the  opportunity  of  deserting  and  sailing  home;  he 
made  up  a  fine  story  of  piratical  conduct  on  his 
admiral's  part,  too  absurd  to  be  credited  till  after 
the  failure  of  the  expedition,  when  it  was  brought 
up  against  Raleigh.  Gondomar  made  capital  out 
of  the  incident  already,  by  urging  Philip  to  have  a 
statement  drawn  up  to  the  effect  that  an  English 
fleet  bearing  the  King's  commission  had  raided  the 
Canary  Islands.  'Pray,'  he  wrote,  'send  a  fleet  to 
punish  the  pirate.  Every  man  caught  should  at 
once  be  killed,  except  Raleigh  and  the  officers,  who 
should  be  brought  to  Seville  and  executed  in  the 
Plaza  the  next  day. ' 

Sir  Thomas  Lake,  on  King  James's  behalf,  ex- 
pressed great  sorrow  for  *the  atrocious  wickedness' 
of  the  English  behaviour  in  the  Canaries,  and  con- 
veyed to  Gondomar  assurances  that  His  Majesty 
was  determined  against  Raleigh,  and  would  join  the 
King  of  Spain  in  bringing  about  his  ruin,  though  for 
the  present  this  resolve  was  to  be  kept  secret.  All 
of  which  demonstrates  that  James  was  eager  to 
seize  the  first  opportunity  of  selling  his  most  dis- 
tinguished subject  to  the  Spaniards,  and  that 
Raleigh's  doom  was  sealed  even  before  the  events 
which  afterward  happened  on  the  Orinoco. 

On  September  the  4th  the  explorers  touched 
Gomera,  another  of  the  Canaries,  and  here  one  of 
the  few  pleasant  incidents  of  the  disastrous  voyage 
came  to  pass. 

The  governor's  wife  happened  to  be  half  English, 
connected  with  the  family  of  Stafford,  and  Raleigh 

152 


Guiana  Again 

sent  her,  by  the  men  who  went  ashore  to  obtain  a 
supply  of  water,  courteous  messages  and  presents. 
The  latter  consisted  of  six  fine  handkerchiefs  and 
six  pairs  of  gloves.  The  lady  of  that  far-away  and 
lonely  island  was  charmed  with  her  handkerchiefs 
and  gloves,  and  returned  the  attention  with  gracious 
words  and  most  welcome  gifts.  'She  sent,'  wrote 
Raleigh,  *four  very  great  loaves  of  sugar,  a  basket 
of  lemons  which  I  much  desired  to  comfort  and 
refresh  our  very  sick  men,  a  basket  of  oranges,  a 
basket  of  most  delicate  grapes,  another  of  pome- 
granates and  figs,  which  trifles  were  better  welcome 
to  me  than  1000  crowns  would  have  been.' 

More  presents  were  dispatched  by  Raleigh  forth- 
with, '  an  ounce  of  delicate  extract  of  amber,  a  great 
glass  of  rose  water  in  high  estimation  here,  a  very 
excellent  picture  of  Mary  Magdalen  and  a  cutwork 
ruff,'  and  these  brought  from  the  generous  lady 
*more  of  refreshing  fruit,  a  basket  of  fine  white 
manchets  and  two  dozen  fat  hens,  with  a  supply  of 
good  water.'  After  this  exchange  of  courtesies  the 
island  was  sacred  to  Raleigh,  and  he  threatened  his 
men  with  death  if  they  plundered  it  of  a  penny- 
worth of  anything.  'And  we  departed  without 
any  offence  given  or  received  to  the  value  of  a 
farthing,  whereof  the  Count  sent  his  friar  aboard 
my  ship  with  a  letter  to  Don  Diego  de  Sarmiento 
[Gondomar],  Ambassador  in  England,  witnessing 
how  nobly  we  had  behaved  ourselves  and  how 
justly  we  had  dealt  with  the  inhabitants  of  the 
island. ' 

That  the  Ambassador  and  the  King  of  England 
between   them   had   laid   their   heads   together   to 

153 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

undo  the  greatest  seaman  alive,  whether  he  did  well 
or  ill,  was  of  course  a  fact  of  which  the  unsuspecting 
governor  of  Gomera  was  in  ignorance. 

The  island  was  left  with  warm  expressions  of 
kindliness  and  good- will  on  both  sides.  Afterward 
Fortune  smiled  no  more  on  the  luckless  voyagers. 
Everything  went  wrong,  gales  kept  them  tossing 
about  on  the  Atlantic  for  six  weeks.  Sickness  and 
pestilence  raged  on  board,  striking  down  officers 
and  men.  Raleigh's  servant,  Talbot,  died,  'as  faith- 
ful and  true  a  man  as  ever  lived.  I  lost  him  to  my 
inestimable  grief,'  recorded  his  unhappy  master. 
There  was  a  shortage  of  water,  and  the  heat  was 
intolerable.  When  the  winds  dropped  a  dead  calm 
set  in  and  the  ships  lay  motionless  as  if  gripped  in  a 
vice  of  molten  brass.  Next  a  great  darkness,  weird 
and  horrible,  descended  on  them,  lasting  two  days. 
Forty-two  men  on  the  'Destiny,'  of  which  young 
Walter  Raleigh  was  captain,  died,  and  there  were 
hundreds  of  others  suffering  torments  from  thirst 
and  plague.  Raleigh  himself  caught  a  deadly  chill, 
for,  when  roused  from  his  bed  by  a  sudden  whirl- 
wind, he  rushed  on  deck  to  get  some  air,  and  in 
another  hour  he  too  was  prostrate  with  fever. 

He  lay  near  to  death  for  many  weary  days.  And 
on  the  10th  of  November,  when  land  was  sighted 
and  was  hailed  with  a  rapturous  cry  by  the  crews, 
the  Admiral  was  too  weak  to  do  more  than  raise 
himself  languidly  on  his  elbow  and  gaze  wistfully 
at  the  coast  for  which  he  yearned. 


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CHAPTER  XXII:  A  Chapter 
of  Disasters 

RALEIGH'S  reception  by  his  old  friends  the 
Indians  was  full  of  reverence  and  devoted 
cordiality.  One  or  two  of  the  chiefs  had 
been  with  him  in  England.  They  all  remembered 
how  before,  when  he  had  come  to  Guiana,  he  had 
called  their  captains  together  and  made  them  under- 
stand that  he  was  the  servant  of  a  Queen  who  was 
the  great  *Cassique'  (Lord)  of  the  North,  and  had 
more  *Cassiques'  under  her  than  there  were  trees  in 
their  country;  that  she  was  an  enemy  of  the  'Cas- 
tellanos'  (Spaniards)  because  of  their  tyranny  and 
oppression. 

They  were  not  to  know  how  things  had  changed 
since,  how  that  'Cassique'  had  been  succeeded  by 
another  who  was  no  enemy  of  the  *Castellanos,' 
but  a  King  who  pandered  to  them  and  tolerated 
their  tyranny  and  oppression  cheerfully. 

Now  they  were  eager  to  tend  the  great  sick 
Englishman,  and  brought  him  bread,  delicious  pine- 
apples, fresh  fish  and  meat.  He  was  carried  ashore 
in  his  litter,  and  away  from  the  pestilential  ship  he 
was  established  in  a  tent,  and  began  to  gain  strength. 
His  men,  too,  landed  and  were  hospitably  enter- 
tained. By  one  of  his  captains,  who  was  invalided 
home,  Sir  Walter  sent  a  letter  to  his  lady  with  the 
good  news  that  Guiana's  coast  had  been  reached : 

'Sweetheart.  I  can  yet  write  unto  you  but  with 
a  weak  hand,  for  I  have  suffered  the  most  violent 
calenture  for  fifteen  days  that  ever  man  did,  and 
lived:  but  God  that  gave  me  strong  heart  in  all  my 

155 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

adversities  hath  also  now  strengthened  it  in  the 
hell-fire  of  heat.  We  have  had  two  most  grievous 
sicknesses  in  our  ship,  of  which  forty-two  have  died 
and  there  are  yet  many  sick,  but  having  recovered 
the  land  of  Guiana  this  12th  of  November  I  hope 
we  shall  recover  them.  We  are  yet  200  men,  and 
the  rest  of  our  fleet  are  reasonably  strong — strong 
enough  I  hope  to  perform  what  we  have  undertaken, 
if  the  diligent  care  at  London  to  make  our  strength 
known  to  the  Spanish  King  by  his  Ambassador  hath 
not  taught  the  Spaniards  to  fortify  all  the  entrances 
against  us.  Howsoever  we  must  make  the  adven- 
ture and  if  we  perish  it  shall  be  no  honour  for  Eng- 
land, nor  gain  for  his  Majesty  to  loose,  among  many 
other,  one  hundred  as  valiant  gentlemen  as  England 
hath  in  it.'  And  Raleigh  adds  with  pride  that 
though  it  would  be  '  a  vanitie  to  say  that  he  might 
be  King  of  the  Indians,'  his  name  has  lived  among 
them.  *They  feed  me  with  fresh  meat  and  all  that 
the  country  yields;  all  offer  to  obey  me.' 

Before  the  expedition  had  started  to  find  the 
mine,  many  of  the  men  showed  signs  of  sullen  dis- 
content. Raleigh's  exhausted  state  from  illness 
made  his  leadership  of  the  river  excursion  out  of 
the  question,  besides  his  presence  with  the  fieet  was 
necessary,  so  it  was  agreed  he  should  stay  behind  at 
Trinidad  with  the  five  large  ships,  while  Kemys,  with 
the  small  vessels,  guided  the  rest  up  the  Orinoco. 

Raleigh's  lieutenant.  Sir  Wareham  St  Leger,  was 
also  detained  at  Trinidad  by  sickness,  and  his  place 
was  taken  by  Sir  Walter's  nephew,  George  Raleigh. 
The  land  forces  were  under  the  command  of  young 
Walter  Raleigh,  the  son  so  often  affectionately  re- 

156 


'HE    WAS    CAliRIED    ASIIOKE    IN    HIS    LITTER'  -—J'ayc    loo 


A  Chapter  of  Disasters 

f erred  to  as  'little  Wat'  in  his  parents'  letters.  He 
had  been  sent  to  Oxford  at  fourteen,  and  inherited 
much  of  his  father's  culture  and  adventurous 
spirit. 

There  could  be  no  disguising  the  fact  that  the 
enterprise  was  fraught  with  grave  risks.  There  was 
a  Spanish  settlement  somewhere  in  Guiana  though 
none  could  exactly  localize  it,  and  this  made  en- 
counters with  the  Spaniards  inevitable  sooner  or 
later.  Soldiers  and  sailors  to  the  number  of  400 
escorted  the  party  as  a  preparation  for  all  con- 
tingencies. It  was  hoped,  however,  to  get  to  the 
mine  without  a  fight. 

The  river  expedition  departed  on  December  10th, 
and  their  instructions  were  that  they  were  to  make 
for  the  mine  and  avoid  a  conflict  with  the  Spaniards, 
if  possible. 

The  soldiers  were  to  encamp  between  the  Spanish 
town  (if  there  was  one)  and  the  mine.  'If  the 
Spaniards  make  war  on  you,'  Raleigh  said, 'you  are 
to  repel  them  if  it  be  in  your  power  and  drive  them 
as  far  as  you  can. ' 

Kemys  had  orders  that,  should  the  mine  not 
prove  as  rich  as  was  hoped  and  be  hardly  worth 
keeping,  he  was  only  to  carry  away  a  few  samples 
of  ore  as  proof  that  the  design  of  working  it  had 
been  genuine.  They  were  to  be  cautious  in  landing, 
'for  with  the  exception  of  a  few  gentlemen,'  wrote 
Raleigh,  'I  know  what  a  scum  of  men  you  have  and 
I  would  not  for  all  the  world  receive  a  blow  from 
the  Spaniards  to  the  dishonour  of  our  nation. ' 

By  the  31st  the  party  of  explorers  had  reached 
the  town  of  San  Thome,  which  had  been  built  by 

157 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

the  Spanish  settlers  on  the  banks  of  the  river.  Here 
they  landed  on  New  Year's  Day  to  rest  the  night 
before  starting  for  the  mine.  According  to  Raleigh's 
account  but  not  that  of  the  Spaniards,  an  ambus- 
cade was  led  against  them  at  nine  o'clock  in  the 
evening  by  a  Captain  Geronimo  de  Grados,  and  the 
English,  whose  rank  and  file  were  useless,  were 
fallen  upon  after  dark,  and  after  being  cast  into 
confusion,  rallied  sufficiently  to  repulse  the  enemy. 
They  pursued  them  to  the  town,  and  here  the  fight- 
ing was  resumed.  In  the  fray  young  Walter  Raleigh 
lost  his  life.  He  was  felled  to  the  earth  by  the  butt- 
end  of  a  Spanish  musket  after  an  exhibition  of 
dare-devil  bravery. 

When  the  town,  consisting  as  it  did  of  130  poor 
palm-leaf  huts,  had  fallen,  the  Spaniards  retired  to 
an  island  near,  whence  they  kept  up  a  desultory 
fire.  Somehow  or  other  a  week  was  allowed  to 
elapse  before  any  movement  was  made  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  mine,  which,  if  Kemys's  calculations 
were  right,  could  only  have  been  eight  miles  distant. 
The  spirits  of  the  men  wavered  when  250  were  shot 
by  the  Spaniards  lying  in  ambush,  and  they  grum- 
bled and  cursed  the  unfortunate  Kemys,  who  was 
also  steadily  losing  heart.  Then  the  Indians 
brought  news  of  Spanish  reinforcements  on  their 
way  up  the  river,  and  there  was  nothing  to  be  done 
but  to  reimbark  the  dwindled  forces  and  to  drift 
down  with  the  swift  current  of  the  river  back  to 
Trinidad,  with  a  tale  of  failure  that  broke  the  heart 
of  the  man  who  had  staked  all  that  was  dearest  to 
him  in  life  on  its  success. 

Before  they  left  San  Thome  all  the  English  soldiers 

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A  Chapter  of  Disasters 

assembled  under  arms  for  young  Raleigh's  burial, 
and  with  reversed  muskets,  trailed  pikes  and  muffled 
drums,  laid  him  near  the  high  altar  in  the  Church 
of  St  Thomas. 

Poor  Kemys  was  bitterly  reproached  when  he 
came  to  Raleigh  on  March  2nd  bringing  no  sheaves 
with  him,  but  only  a  miserable  story  of  reverses. 

*I  told  him  that,  seeing  my  son  was  lost,  I  cared 
not  if  he  had  lost  a  hundred  more  in  opening  the 
mine  so  my  credit  had  been  saved.  What  shall 
become  of  me  now,  I  know  not.  I  am  unpardoned 
in  England,  and  my  poor  estate  consumed,  and 
whether  any  other  State  or  prince  will  give  me 
bread  I  know  not. ' 

/     Kemys,    who   had   been   his   true   and    devoted 

I  servant  since  boyhood,  never  faltering  in  his  loyalty, 

and  in  whom  Raleigh  had  placed  implicit  trust  and 

confidence,  so  took  to  heart  his  master's  reproaches 

that  he  soon  after  committed  suicide  in  his  cabin. 

No  wonder  Raleigh  wrote  in  his  most  pathetic 
letter  to  his  wife,  telling  her  of  their  boy's  death, 
'my  brains  are  broken.' 

*I  was  loth  to  write,'  the  letter  ran,  'because  I 
knew  not  how  to  comfort  you;  and  God  knows  I 
never  knew  what  sorrow  meant  till  now.  Comfort 
you  heart,  dearest  Besse,  I  shall  sorrow  for  us  both. 
.  .  .  The  Lord  bless  and  comfort  you  that  you 
may  bear  patiently  the  death  of  so  valiant  a  son. ' 

Then  in  a  long  postscript  he  tells  her  the  whole 
story  of  Kemys's  expedition  and  its  failure. 

'There  never  was  a  poor  man  so  exposed  to 
slaughter  as  I  was,'  he  ends.  'My  brains  are 
broken  and  I  cannot  write  much   .    .    . ' 

159 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

*  Whitney,  for  whom  I  sold  my  plate  at  Plymouth, 
and  to  whom  I  gave  more  credit  than  all  my  cap- 
tains, ran  from  me  at  the  Grenadas,  and  Wollaston 
with  him,  so  as  I  am  now  but  five  ships,  and  one  of 
those  I  have  sent  home  with  a  rabble  of  idle  rascals 
in  her  which  I  know  will  not  spare  to  wound  me, 
but  I  care  not.  I  am  sure  there  is  never  a  base 
slave  in  the  fleet  hath  taken  the  pains  and  care  I 
have  done,  hath  slept  so  little  and  hath  travailed  so 
much.  My  friends  will  not  believe  them  and  for 
the  rest  I  care  not. ' 

Raleigh's  bitterness  and  self-pity  were  not  with- 
out cause.  Many  of  his  men  were  mutinous,  two 
of  his  captains  had  deserted  and  wanted  to  turn 
pirates  for  their  own  advantage. 

Another  attack  on  Guiana  in  these  circumstances 
was  out  of  the  question,  and  in  depths  of  despond- 
ency he  finally  set  sail  for  England. 

Lord  Arundel  and  the  Earl  of  Pembroke  had 
stood  surety  for  him,  and  Raleigh  would  not  betray 
their  trust.  '  I  have  brought  myself  and  my  ship  to 
England  ...  at  the  manifest  peril  of  my  life  .  .  . 
for  even  death  itself  shall  not  make  me  turn  thief 
and  vagabond  nor  will  I  ever  betray  the  noble 
courtesy  of  the  several  gentlemen  who  gave  sureties 
for  me.' 

He  arrived  at  Plymouth  in  the  'Destiny,'  on  the 
21st  of  June.  His  state  of  mind  was  one  of  utter 
despair.  He  had  failed  in  what  he  had  pledged  his 
life  to  perform,  and,  contrary  to  the  conditions  im- 
posed upon  him,  had  molested  a  Spanish  settlement 
and  embroiled  English  soldiers  with  those  of  Spain. 
The   whole  undertaking  had  been   hopeless  from 

160 


A  Chapter  of  Disasters 

start  to  finish,  a  buccaneering  venture  which  only 
success  could  have  saved  from  the  world's  censure. 
Slowly  and  surely  Gondomar,  the  crafty,  relent- 
less   ambassador,    had    completed    his    deep-laid 
schemes  of  removing  the  one  great  survivor  of  the 
old    violent    animosity    between    the    two    leading 
nations  of  Europe.     And  now  at  his  bidding  the 
I  King  of  England  was  ready  to  condemn,  unheard, 
;  the  most  brilliant  and  distinguished  Englishman  of 
;  his  time. 

*They  have  sent  to  arrest  Raleigh  and  his  ships 
at  Plymouth,'  Gondomar  wrote  in  his  secret  dis- 
patches to  Philip.  *If  he  has  brought  anything  of 
value  it  is  sure  to  have  been  stolen,  but  I  am  told 
he  has  nothing  but  some  tobacco  and  a  dish  and 
ewer  of  silver  gilt.  It  is  certain  Raleigh  will  try  to 
excuse  himself  by  saying  that  everything  has  been 
done  without  his  orders,  and  thus  cast  the  blame 
upon  the  dead  as  he  and  his  friends  are  already 
doing.  But  withal  the  living  bring  the  plunder,  and 
I  think  everything  possible  is  being  done  here  in 
your  Majesty's  interest  to  bring  them  no  signal 
punishment  and  restitution.  The  King  gave  me 
his  faith,  his  hand,  and  his  word  that  if  Raleigh 
dared  so  much  as  to  look  upon  any  of  your  Majesty's 
I  territories  or  vassals,  even  if  he  brought  back  his 
I  ships  loaded  with  gold,  he  would  hand  all  of  them 
\  with  Raleigh  himself  to  your  Majesty  that  you 
\  might  hang  him  in  the  Plaza  of  Madrid.  Now  that 
the  time  has  come  for  fulfilment,  and  I  have 
reminded  him  of  it,  his  Majesty  has  promised  that 
he  will  do  it  as  soon  as  a  judicial  examination  proves 
the  excesses  to  have  been  committed   ...   he  has 

161 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

sent  Buckingham  and  Digby  to  me  to  say  that 
Raleigh  shall  be  punished  with  the  utmost  severity; 
.  .  .  that  Raleigh's  friends  and  all  England  shall 
not  save  him  from  the  gallows. ' 

Gondomar  boasted  that,  since  he  came  to  London 
as  ambassador,  he  had  shown  the  English  that  he 
was  disinclined  to  suffer  any  slights,  either  person- 
ally or  directed  against  his  country.  In  a  private 
conversation  with  James,  Gondomar  asked  him 
what  he  would  think  if  a  Spanish  fleet  were  to  make 
the  same  hostile  entry  into  the  ports  of  Scotland  or 
Ireland  as  his  ships  under  Raleigh  had  done  on  their 
way  to  the  Orinoco.  The  King  replied  that  he  had 
*  spoken  very  well, '  and  cited  an  excellent  example. 
Raleigh  he  pronounced  '  a  thief, '  and  said  there  was 
no  excuse  for  him.  However,  the  Ambassador  felt 
that,  in  spite  of  the  King's  assurances,  if  justice 
were  to  be  done,  his  Majesty  would  require  some 
reminder  to  carry  it  out. 

'Even  if  the  King  hang  Raleigh,*  he  wrote  to  his 
master,  'and  restores  the  plunder,  I  should  grieve 
that  your  Majesty  should  be  satisfied  with  this  for 
so  atrocious  a  wickedness.  .  .  .  Perhaps  such  an 
opportunity  will  never  occur  again  of  asserting 
ourselves  and  giving  them  a  lesson.  I  told  the 
King  and  Council  that  Your  Majesty's  goodness 
might  lead  you  to  pardon  offences  against  yourself, 
but  conscience  will  not  allow  you  to  forgive  injuries 
against  your  subjects.' 

Raleigh's  misdemeanours  were  thus  monstrously 
exaggerated  to  alarm  the  King  of  England,  and  to 
serve  as  an  object  lesson  to  teach  Europe  how  sub- 
missively that  monarch  could  be  made  bow  to  Spain. 

162 


CHAPTERXXIII:  Gondomar's 
Letters 

NOTHING  can  give  a  clearer  notion  of  the 
way  in  which  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  was 
sacrificed  to  Spain,  than  the  letters 
(already  quoted)  of  the  Ambassador,  who  was  so 
set  on  hounding  him  to  his  death. 

We  owe  the  discovery  of  many  of  these  facts  to  the 
diligent  researches  made  by  Major  Martin  A.  S. 
Hume  in  the  Palace  Library  of  Madrid  and  at 
Samancas,  where  these  documents,  so  filled  with 
venomous  spite,  have  been  preserved.  Yet  it  was 
not  for  private  revenge,  as  Mr  Hume  points  out, 
or  for  the  actual  sins  of  the  last  attempt  on  Guiana, 
that  Gondomar  pursued  this  persistent  course  of 
malice,  but  to  impress  indelibly  upon  England  that 
Spain,  and  Spain  alone,  should  hold  sway  in  South 
America. 

The  story  of  Raleigh's  eventful  life  at  this  point 
where  it  is  nearing  its  end  cannot  be  better  told  than 
in  giving  further  extracts  from  these  letters,  in 
which  brutal  boasts  and  threats  are  veiled  with 
scarcely  a  shred  of  diplomatic  reticence. 

On  the  14th  of  June  the  Ambassador  wrote,  saying 
that  he  had  always  urged  upon  James  the  mistake 
of  letting  Raleigh  sail  with  so  many  ships,  which 
could  only  mean  the  robbery  and  devastation  of 
Spanish  territory. 

*I  urged  that  prevention  was  much  better  than 
cure,  whereupon  your  Majesty  replied  that  you 
would  insist  upon  due  sureties  being  given  that 
Raleigh  should  do  no  harm.     I  wrote  this  to  my 

163 


Sir  TFaher  Raleigh 

King  who,  in  accordance  with  this  assurance  re- 
frained from  sending  out  his  fleet  to  oppose  Raleigh 
notwithstanding  that  he  was  informed  by  others 
of  the  evil  intentions  of  the  latter.  We  know  now 
that  Raleigh  assailed  the  Canaries  and  attacked 
towns  in  Guiana,  burning  churches  and  committing 
irreparable  damage.  Captain  Bailey  left  him  when 
he  saw  what  he  was  about  .  .  .  prompt  and  severe 
public  action  should  now  be  taken  against  Raleigh  in 
order  that  my  master  should  see  by  Your  Majesty's 
acts  that  you  are  really  desirous  of  his  friendship.' 

On  June  20th,  when  Raleigh  had  reached  Ply- 
mouth, the  Ambassador  writes  again: 

'  Raleigh  has  arrived  with  all  the  property  he  has 
seized  from  my  master's  subjects.  I  do  not  call  it 
stolen,  or  him  a  pirate  because,  as  he  returns  so 
confidently  to  an  English  port,  after  all  I  said  to 
your  Majesty  to  prevent  his  sailing,  it  is  evident 
that  those  who  told  my  King  that  Raleigh  was  going 
as  commander  of  your  Majesty's  Fleet  for  the 
purpose  of  waylaying  and  plundering  the  Spanish 
Flotilla  and  conquering  my  master's  territories  will 
persist  in  their  opinion. 

*His  Catholic  Majesty  will  certainly  see  that 
when  I  persuaded  him  that  Raleigh  would  do  no 
harm  I  was  deceived — for  the  facts  are  notoriously 
otherwise.  Your  Majesty  has  so  good  a  memory 
that  you  will  not  forget  your  ''faith,  hand  and  word" 
pledged  to  me.  Walter  Raleigh  has  robbed,  sacked 
and  burnt  and  murdered  Spanish  subjects  and  has 
brought  back  enough  wealth  to  make  him  and  his 
supporters  rich.  Justice  demands  that  Raleigh  and 
all  his  companions  shall  be  hanged  directly  they  set 

164 


Gondomar^ s  Letters 

one  foot  on  English  soil,  without  waiting  for  them 
to  set  the  other  foot.  I  am  quite  sure  the  King  my 
master  would  treat  any  of  his  vassals  so  if  they  had 
commenced  this  rupture. ' 

Even  more  plainly  did  Gondomar  speak  when  he 
paid  farewell  visits  to  James  before  his  intended 
departure  for  Madrid.  This  Herod  and  Pilate 
embraced  and  pressed  hands,  and  James  remarked 
that,  'so  far  as  greatness  was  concerned,'  the  King 
of  Spain  was  greater  of  course  than  all  the  rest  of 
Christian  kings  put  together. 

*  When  I  thanked  him  he  seized  my  hand,  held  it, 
pressing  it  in  his,  saying  that  never  in  public  or 
private  would  he  do  or  even  think  anything  against 
Your  Majesty,  but  would  in  all  things  strive  to 
avoid  evil  to  you.  He  had,  he  said,  quite  banished 
piracy,  and  for  the  last  two  years  no  one  had  dared 
to  bring  to  England  property  seized  from  Spaniards. 
In  talk  the  King  admitted  that  if  Your  Majesty 
would  be  his  friend  he  needed  nothing  else.' 

On  the  16th  of  July  Gondomar  wrote  to  King  of 
Spain,  describing  interviews  in  which  Raleigh's  fate 
was  sealed: 

*I  had  taken  leave  of  the  King  and  was  about  to 
set  out  for  Spain  when,  in  accordance  with  Your 
Majesty's  orders,  I  deferred  my  departure  and  sent 
to  ask  for  another  audience. 

*The  King  sent  to  say  that,  on  Monday  2nd,  he 
would  expect  me  at  Greenw^ich.  I  thought  I  had 
better  see  the  Council  first  and  tackle  them,  so  I 
conferred  with  Buckingham  who  ordered  them  in 
the  King's  name  to  give  me  audience.  ...  I  fixed 
five  o'clock  on  the  29th  of  June;  and  on  my  arrival 

1C5 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

all  the  Councillors  came  out  to  meet  me,  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  saying  that  they  had  sus- 
pended all  their  business  and  willingly  attended 
my  orders.' 

This  gave  Gondomar  his  chance  of  enlarging  on 
Raleigh's  crimes.  He  enumerated  the  'murders, 
sackings,  pillage  and  burnings'  of  which  he  was 
guilty,  'such  as  were  never  seen  in  time  of  war.' 
He  said  how  offended  the  King  of  Spain  was  at 
such  insolence.  Once  more  he  repeated  the  King's 
pledge  on  'faith,  hand  and  word,'  to  surrender 
Raleigh  and  his  companions  to  be  hanged  in  the 
Plaza  of  Madrid. 

There  were  friends  of  Raleigh's  in  the  Council 
who  were  indignant  at  the  arrogant  attitude  the 
Spanish  Ambassador  had  assumed.  They  said  he 
dared  to  use  expressions  such  as  no  king  or  council 
of  England  had  ever  allowed  before  from  a  foreign 
ambassador.  They  objected  to  his  calling  the  King 
to  account  for  Raleigh's  acts,  and  saying  that  he  had 
promised  to  hand  him  over,  if  he  did  anything  to 
offend  Spain,  to  be  hanged  in  Madrid;  just  as  if  Eng- 
land, forsooth,  were  tributary  to  the  King  of  Spain. 

Gondomar  told  the  Council  that  Philip  had  no 
need  of  the  King  of  England's  friendship,  and  in 
future  would  guard  his  own  prestige  and  the  safety 
of  his  subjects'  lives  and  property. 

Bacon  made  answer  for  himself  and  fellow-coun- 
cillors that  they  were  all  very  sorry,  but  the  King 
should  not  be  held  responsible  for  the  excesses  of  a 
private  person. 

The  King  would  fulfil  his  promise  and  give  full 
satisfaction.     He  had  publicly  condemned  Raleigh's 

166 


Gondomar^ s  Letters 

proceedings  and  had  arrested  him  and  his  ships  as 
soon  as  he  came  back.  The  Archbishop,  'doffing 
his  bonnet,'  said  that  Raleigh's  proceedings  certainly 
deserved  punishment.  Another  special  Council 
was  held  by  James  at  Greenwich,  and  the  general 
conclusion  arrived  at  was  that  ample  compensation 
should  be  given  to  Spain,  and  Raleigh  and  his  com- 
panions severely  punished. 

The  next  afternoon,  Gondomar  was  rowed  down 
the  river  to  Greenwich  Palace,  and  swaggered  gaily 
into  the  King's  Chamber:  he  next  was  duly  em- 
braced by  the  King,  and  when  the  doors  were  closed 
Gondomar  further  denounced  Raleigh,  and  James 
became  very  humble  and  apologetic.  Gondomar 
had  been  a  true  prophet,  he  said,  and  he,  the  King, 
had  been  deceived.  He  had  always  doubted  the 
existence  of  a  mine,  but  he  never  could  have  believed 
that  such  crimes  as  Raleigh's  could  have  been 
committed.  When  Gondomar  said  that  the  time 
was  past  for  inquiries  and  delays,  that  Raleigh 
should  be  hanged  at  once,  the  King  made  a  feint  of 
being  outraged.  He  snatched  off  his  hat,  tore  his 
hair,  and  said  if  that  was  Spain's  idea  of  justice, 
it  was  not  England's.  He  never  had  and  never 
would,  with  God's  help,  allow  a  man  to  be  con- 
demned unheard  in  his  own  defence  without  a 
proper  trial. 

Of  course,  Gondomar  admitted,  the  laws  of  Spain 
and  England  differed,  for  such  men  would  have 
been  punished  in  Spain  without  all  this  discussion 
and  procrastination.  What  had  the  King  of  Spain 
not  done  for  James,  and  now  he  took  the  part  of  a 
pirate  against  his  friend? 

167 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

Gondomar  had  told  him  the  plain  truth,  but 
since  this  was  of  no  avail,  his  King  would  doubtless 
take  the  matter  into  his  own  hands  and  defend  the 
honour  of  Spain.  This  threat  of  war  alarmed  King 
James,  and  he  begged  the  Ambassador  to  send  his 
pledge  of  peace  to  Spain  that  same  night.  He 
promised  to  arrange  for  the  Council  to  meet  the 
following  Wednesday  and  decide  upon  Raleigh's 
sentence,  which  he  vowed  should  be  carried  out 
without  delay.  Gondomar,  when  he  dispatched 
the  report  of  this  interview  to  Philip,  did  not  attempt 
to  conceal  his  exultation  at  the  *  prestige'  it  would 
give  Spain  for  the  King  of  England  to  hand  over 
one  of  his  subjects  to  be  punished  in  a  foreign 
country.  He  left  the  King's  presence  in  high  delight 
and  took  a  walk  in  the  gardens  with  the  Duke  of 
Lennox.  The  King  sent  after  him  a  basket  of 
cherries,  which  he  ate  as  he  went  along,  and  the 
frivolous  King,  looking  out  of  the  window,  called 
out  in  fits  of  laughter.  'A  dignified  ambassador 
indeed,  eating  cherries  out  of  a  basket. ' 

Thus  with  a  noble  life  hanging  in  the  balance 
could  King  James  lightly  bandy  jokes.  At  the 
next  meeting  of  the  Council  there  was  strong  op- 
position taken  to  the  step  of  sending  Raleigh  to  be 
hanged  in  Spain.  But  James  said  his  promise  was 
given  and  he  could  not  break  it.  Carew,  Raleigh's 
loyal  kinsman,  prayed  on  his  knees  that  Raleigh 
should  not  be  condemned  unheard.  Bacon,  though 
he  was  not  a  friend  of  Raleigh's,  tried  to  dissuade 
the  King  from  the  humiliation  of  handing  him  over 
to  the  Spaniards.  He  suggested  that  James  had 
made  the  promise  rashly  without  intending  it  to  be 

168 


Gondomar^s  Letters 

accepted  literally,  a  suggestion  which  greatly  angered 
the  King.  He  declared  he  had  meant  what  he  said 
and  would  carry  it  out. 

Again  he  and  the  Ambassador  met,  this  time  on 
more  affectionate  terms  than  before.  Gondomar 
offered  to  write  the  dispatch  in  answer  to  the  King 
of  Spain's  by  James's  dictation.  But  when  it  was 
written,  Gondomar  declared  it  was  not  strong 
enough,  and  must  be  written  over  again  in  more 
explicit  terms.  When  James  hesitated  Gondomar 
began  to  bully  him  into  agreeing  to  send  Raleigh 
and  the  others  to  Spain  in  the  'Destiny. ' 

Satisfied  with  this  humiliating  pledge,  which  was 
confirmed  by  a  letter  to  the  King  of  Spain  from 
the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  who  was  said  to  be 
more  Spanish  than  a  Spaniard  in  his  sympathies, 
Gondomar  departed  for  Madrid. 

All  this  time  Raleigh  was  under  arrest  at  Ply- 
mouth. He  might  have  gone  to  France  and  sold 
himself  to  the  service  of  Richelieu  and  the  French 
King,  but  he  was  honourable  enough  to  return  and 
so  invited  capture.  Vice-Admiral  Sir  Lewis  Stuke- 
ley  of  Devon,  related  to  him  by  blood,  was  appointed 
to  bring  him  to  London.  Raleigh  had  been  met  by 
his  faithful  Bess,  and,  with  one  of  his  devoted  fol- 
lowers, Captain  King,  was  winding  up  his  affairs  at 
Plymouth.  Stukeley  at  first  proved  so  casual  a 
jailor  that  Raleigh  might  still  have  slipped  over  to 
France  in  a  French  vessel  that  lay  in  the  Sound,  yet 
he  resisted  the  temptation.  Maybe  that  hope 
revived  and  his  indomitable  spirit  made  a  last 
rebound  at  the  thought  that  a  future  of  peace  and 
honour  at  home  might  still  be  in  store  for  him. 


1G9 


CHAPTER  XXIV:  Raleigh  de- 
fends  himself  in  Letters  to  Lord 
Carew 

ON  the  21st  of  June  1618,  Raleigh  wrote 
from  Plymouth  to  his  kinsman,  Lord 
Carew,  an  important  letter  containing  his 
version  of  what  had  happened.  He  was  eager  that 
the  statement  should  be  laid  before  the  Lords  of  the 
Council  as  soon  as  possible,  in  order  that  his  friends 
might  make  a  motion  in  his  favour. 

He  ^  begins  by  referring  to  a  previous  letter  which 
he  had  written  to  Mr  Secretary  Winwood,  who 
had  died  since  he  had  received  it,  and  continues  as 
follows : 

*By  that  letter  your  Lordship  will  have  learnt 
the  reasons  given  by  Kemys  for  not  discovering 
the  mine,  which  could  have  been  done,  notwith- 
standing his  obstinacy,  by  means  of  the  cacique 
of  the  country,  an  old  acquaintance  of  mine,  if  the 

1  RALEIGH'S  LETTER  TO  MR  SECRETARY  WINWOOD 

Sir, — Since  the  death  of  Kemys  it  is  considered  by  the  Sergeant- 
Major  and  others  of  his  inward  friends,  that  he  told  them  he  could 
have  brought  them  into  the  mine  within  two  hours  march  from 
the  riverside;  but  because  my  son  was  slain,  myself  unpardoned 
and  not  like  to  live,  he  had  no  reason  to  open  the  mine  either  for 
the  Spaniard  or  the  King.  They  answered  that  the  King  (though 
I  were  not  pardoned)  had  granted  me  my  heart's  desire  under  the 
Great  Seal.  He  replied  that  the  grant  to  me  was  as  to  a  man  non 
ens  in  the  law,  and  therefore  of  no  force.  But  when  I  was  resolved 
to  write  to  yr.  Honour,  he  prayed  me  to  join  with  him  in  excusing 
him  for  not  going  to  the  mine.  I  answered  him  I  would  not  do  it, 
but  if  he  himself  could  satisfy  the  King  and  State  that  he  had 
reason  not  to  open  it  I  should  be  glad  of  it   .    .    .   but  for  my  part 

170 


Raleigh  defends  himself 

companies  had  remained  in  the  river  two  days 
longer;  inasmuch  as  the  cacique  offered  pledges 
to  do  it.  The  servant  of  the  Governor,  moreover, 
who  is  now  with  me,  could  have  led  them  to  two 
gold  mines  not  two  leagues  distant  from  the  town, 
as  well  as  to  a  silver  mine  at  not  more  than  three 
harquebuss  shots  distant,  and  I  will  make  this  truth 
manifest  when  my  health  allows  me  to  go  to  London. 
As  for  the  rest,  if  Whitney  and  Wollaston  had  not 
gone  from  me  to  the  Granadas,  and  the  rest  had  not 
abandoned  me.  ...  I  would  have  returned  from 
Newfoundland  to  Guiana  and  would  have  died  there 
or  fulfilled  my  undertaking.  When  I  saw  that  they 
had  deserted  me  I  resolved  to  steer  for  Newfound- 
land to  take  in  water  and  clean  the  ship. '  He  then 
relates  the  story  of  the  mutiny,  of  how  the  men 
resisted  and  shouted  and  said  they  would  rather  die 
than  return  to  England;  and  how  they  took  pos- 
session of  the  magazine,  armour  and  swords  and 
tried  to  intimidate  him  into  turning  pirate.  *I 
answered  that  even  if  I  were  a  beggar  I  would  not 
be  a  robber  or  do  anything  base,  nor  would  I  abuse 
the  confidence  and  commission  of  the  King.  I  am 
well  aware  that  with  my  ship,  than  which  in  the 
world  there  is  no  better,  I   could  have  enriched 

I  must  avow  that  he  might  without  loss  have  done  it.  He  told  me 
that  he  would  wait  on  me  presently  and  give  me  better  satisfaction. 
But  I  was  no  sooner  come  for  him  unto  my  cabin  when  I  heard  a 
pistol  go  off  over  my  head,  and  sending  to  know  who  shot  it, 
word  was  brought  to  me  that  Kemys  shot  it  out  of  his  cabin 
window  to  clean  it,  and  his  boy  going  into  the  cabin  found  him 
lying  upon  his  bed  with  much  blood  upon  him,  and  looking  in  his 
face  saw  him  dead.  The  pistol  did  but  crack  his  rib,  but  he  found 
a  long  knife  in  his  body. 

171 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

myself  to  100,000  in  the  space  of  three  months  and 
could  have  collected  a  company  which  would  have 
impeded  the  traffic  of  Europe.  But  those  who  have 
told  the  King  that  I  had  feigned  the  mine  and  really 
intended  to  turn  Corsair,  are  really  mistaken  in 
their  malice,  for  after  failing  in  the  discovery  of  the 
mine,  by  fault  of  another,  and  after  having  lost  my 
estate  and  my  son  and  being  without  pardon  for 
myself  or  security  for  my  life,  I  have  held  it  all  as 
nought,  and  offer  myself  to  His  Majesty  to  do  with 
me  as  he  will  without  making  any  terms.  As  for 
the  mutineers  the  greatest  number  of  them  fled  from 
me  in  Ireland.  .  .  .  Since  my  arrival  in  Ireland  I 
have  been  told  that  I  have  fallen  into  the  grave 
displeasure  of  His  Majesty  for  having  taken  a  town 
in  Guiana  which  was  in  the  possession  of  Spaniards. 
When  my  men  heard  this,  they  were  so  afraid  of 
being  hanged  that  they  were  on  the  point  of  making 
me  sail  away  again  by  force.  With  regard  to  taking 
the  town,  although  I  gave  no  authority  for  it  to  be 
done,  it  was  impossible  to  avoid  it,  because  when  the 
English  were  landed  at  night  .  .  .  the  Spaniards 
attacked  them  with  the  intention  of  destroying 
them,  killing  several  and  wounding  many.  ...  It 
was  in  the  entrance  of  the  town  my  son  was  killed. 
.  .  .  And  my  Lord,  that  Guiana  be  Spanish 
territory  can  never  be  acknowledged,  for  I  myself 
took  possession  of  it  for  the  Queen  of  England  by 
virtue  of  a  session  of  all  the  native  chiefs  of  the 
country.  His  Majesty  knows  this  to  be  true,  as  is 
proved  by  the  concession  granted  by  him  under  the 
Great  Seal  of  England  to  Harcourt.  ...  It  will 
thus  be  seen  that  His  Majesty,  in  any  case,  has  a 

172 


Raleigh  defends  himself 

better  right  and  title  than  anyone.  I  heard  in 
Ireland  that  my  enemies  have  declared  that  it  was 
my  intention  to  turn  Corsair  and  fly,  but  at  the 
manifest  peril  of  my  life  I  have  brought  myself  and 
my  ship  to  England.  I  have  suffered  as  many 
miseries  as  it  was  possible  for  me  to  suffer,  which 
I  could  not  have  endured  if  God  had  not  given  me 
strength.  If  His  Majesty  wishes  that  I  should 
suffer  even  more,  let  God's  will  be  done,  for  even 
Death  itself  shall  not  make  me  turn  thief  or  vaga- 
bond, nor  will  I  ever  betray  the  noble  courtesy  of 
the  several  gentlemen  who  gave  sureties  for  me. — 
Your  poor  Kinsman,  W.  Raleigh. 

^Postscript. — I  beg  you  will  excuse  me  to  my 
lords  for  not  writing  to  them,  because  want  of 
sleep  for  fear  of  being  surprised  in  my  cabin  at  night 
has  almost  deprived  me  of  my  sight,  and  some  return 
of  the  pleurisy  which  I  had  in  the  Tower  has  so 
weakened  my  hand  that  I  cannot  hold  the  pen — 21st 
June  1618.' 

The  letter  is  given  here  in  full,  because  it  contains 
Raleigh's  principal  points  of  defence,  and  makes 
clear  much  that  would  otherwise  be  difficult  to 
understand  with  regard  to  his  actions.  It  also 
shows  that  he  was  not  fully  aware  of  his  hazardous 
position.  Before  he  had  sent  off  this  letter  he 
learned  in  some  way  what  charges  were  to  be  made 
against  him  by  the  officers  who  had  deserted,  and 
enclosed  another  letter  under  the  same  cover  in 
which  he  replies  to  them  one  by  one. 

He  emphatically  denies  that  he  wasted  time  at 
Plymouth  before  the  outward  voyage,  and  that  he 
received  any  other  provisions  in  the  Canaries  be- 

173 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

sides  '  a  basket  of  oranges  and  three  loaves  of  sugar ' 
sent  by  the  Countess  of  Gomera. 

As  to  the  accusation  that  he  intended  to  abandon 
his  country  and  bring  those  under  him  into  trouble, 
he  urges  that,  as  far  as  his  accusers  were  concerned, 
he  could  have  done  it  with  their  consent,  and  that  his 
having  come  back  to  cast  himself  on  His  Majesty's 
mercy  was  sufficient  proof  of  his  good  faith. 

*I  hope  to  live  to  answer  them  to  their  faces,'  he 
wi'ote,  'and  prove  them  all  to  be  cowards  and  liars 
and  in  spirit  thieves.  I  write  this  after  having 
sealed  the  other  letters,  and  I  pray  you  give  a  copy 
to  my  poor  wife  who,  with  the  death  of  her  son  and 
these  rumours,  I  fear  will  go  mad.  I  forgot  to 
answer  the  third  article,  in  which  they  accuse  me 
of  having  sacked  the  town  before  seeking  the  mine. 
.  .  .  With  regard  to  their  most  impudent  assertion 
that  the  entering  of  the  town  and  the  burning  of  the 
houses  was  contrary  to  all  my  promises  and  pro- 
testations, I  shall  be  content  to  suffer  death  if  I 
had  any  part  or  knowledge  whatever  of  the  burning 
or  sacking.  I  know  nothing  about  it.  .  .  . '  This 
was  indeed  true,  Raleigh  was  many  miles  away  from 
the  exploring  expedition  when  it  took  the  ill-fated 
step  of  attacking  San  Thome,  the  one  spot  of 
Guiana  which  the  Spaniards  could  call  their  own 
under  any  sort  of  protest.  Had  he  been  actually  in 
command  he  would  no  doubt  have  advised  some 
other  place  for  landing,  and  one  of  the  two  main 
charges  against  him,  i.e,  that  he  had  attacked  a 
territory  already  in  possession  of  the  Spaniards 
could  never  have  been  made.  But  as  we  have  seen 
from  the  correspondence  of  the  Spanish  Ambassador 

174 


Raleigh  defends  himself 

with  the  Kings  of  England  and  Spain,  Raleigh's 
doom  had  been  sealed  before  he  even  set  foot  in 
Guiana.  What  else  could  King  James  have  meant 
when  he  gave  his  promise  upon  his  '  faith,  hand  and 
word'  to  send  Raleigh  to  be  hanged  in  Madrid  if  he 
*even  so  much  as  looked  upon  the  territories  or 
subjects  of  the  King  of  Spain.'  What  is  more,  a 
scheme  had  been  laid  by  Gondomar  from  the  begin- 
ning that  English  and  Spaniards  should  be  em- 
broiled, and  that  the  conflict  between  the  two  should 
serve  as  an  excuse  for  the  fulfilment  of  the  King's 
promise.  Confident  that  the  adventurers  would 
have  as  much  severity  exercised  toward  them  as  if 
they  had  done  the  'like  spoil  in  any  of  the  cities  of 
England'  in  having  obtained  King  James's  pledge 
to  that  effect,  Gondomar  had  departed  for  Spain 
a  few  days  after  the  arrival  of  Raleigh  in  the 
'Destiny'  at  Plymouth.  While  the  doomed  man 
was  still  on  the  high  seas,  James  had  issued  a  proc- 
lamation denouncing  the  affair  of  San  Thome  as 
scandalous.  He  declared  his  detestation  of  the 
said  insolences,  and  urged  all  his  subjects  to  give 
evidence  in  the  matter  in  order  that  the  guilty 
should  be  brought  to  punishment.  We  shall  now 
see  what  that  punishment  was  to  be  and  how  it  was 
met  by  Raleigh. 


175 


CHAPTER  XXV:  Betrayal 

ON  July  25th  the  journey  of  Sir  Walter  to 
London  in  the  custody  of  Stukeley  began. 
The  party  consisted  of  himself,  Lady 
Raleigh  and  servants.  King,  his  loyal  captain,  and 
a  Frenchman,  a  quack  doctor  called  Manourie, 
whom  Raleigh  suspected  of  being  a  spy  though  he 
put  faith  in  his  medical  skill.  Manourie  made 
mischief  between  Raleigh  and  his  gaoler  by  repeat- 
ing remarks  that  he  let  fall  by  the  way,  such  as 
when  they  rode  by  his  beloved  home,  Sherborne 
Park,  his  exclaiming,  'All  this  was  mine  and  it  was 
taken  from  me  unjustly. ' 

They  baited  and  lodged  at  *  divers  gentlemen's 
houses'  upon  the  road;  and  hearing  from  some  of 
the  hosts  of  the  storm  brewing  against  him  at  court, 
Raleigh  began  to  regret  that  he  had  not  taken 
advantage  of  the  opportunity  which  offered  itself 
fat  Plymouth  to  make  an  escape  to  France,  and 
I  confided  to  King  his  desire  to  accomplish  it  in  some 
other  way.  They  came  to  Salisbury  by  way  of 
Wilton  on  July  27th,  and  here  Raleigh  acted  one  of 
those  parts  altogether  unworthy  of  that  side  of  his 
character  which  we  have  learned  to  admire.  He 
feigned  sickness,  and  the  French  quack  dressed 
him  for  the  role  of  malingerer.  Manourie  declared 
that  he  asked  him  to  mix  him  a  powerful  emetic 
in  order  to  *  evacuate  bad  humours'  and  to  gain 
'  time  to  work  my  friends  and  order  my  affairs,  per- 
haps even  to  pacify  His  Majesty.'  The  King  was 
on  his  summer  progress,  and  in  its  course  was  to 
stay  at  Salisbury,  and  Raleigh  counted  on  meeting 

176 


Betrayal 

him  there,  and  throwing  himself  on  his  mercy.  Lady 
Raleigh  and  her  retinue,  with  the  faithful  Captain 
King,  proceeded  to  London,  leaving  Raleigh  at 
Salisbury  to  be  ministered  to  by  Bishop  Andrew's 
physicians,  who  were  greatly  puzzled  by  his  strange 
malady.  For  four  days  he  was  invalided,  living 
on  a  smuggled  leg  of  mutton,  and  writing  his  rapid 
and  effective  Apology  for  the  Voyage  to  Guiana. 
Manourie  acted  as  his  amanuensis,  and  copied  the 
manuscript  and  accepted  money  from  Raleigh  for 
his  pains.  As  soon  as  the  treatise  was  written, 
Raleigh  recovered.  He  was  apparently  not  in  the 
least  ashamed  of  the  deception  he  had  practised, 
and  justified  it  in  his  last  speech  by  citing  the 
example  of  David.  'David  did  make  himself  a  fool 
and  suffered  spittle  to  fall  upon  his  beard  that  he 
might  escape  the  hands  of  his  enemies. ' 

The  King  arrived  at  Salisbury  on  August  1st, 
and  whether  or  not  Raleigh  succeeded  in  bringing 
his  Apology  to  his  notice,  the  only  result  seems  to 
have  been  that  a  royal  command  was  issued  for 
the  prisoner's  immediate  removal  to  London. 

The  eagerness  of  France  to  provide  so  distin- 
guished a  fugitive  as  Raleigh  with  a  refuge  was 
demonstrated  at  Brentford  when  a  French  gentle- 
man managed  to  get  speech  with  him  and  advised 
him  that  Le  Clerc,  a  French  agent  in  London,  had 
something  of  importance  to  communicate  to  him. 
On  reaching  London,  where  he  was  permitted  at 
first  to  stay  in  his  wife's  house  in  Broad  Street,  Le 
Clerc  called  on  him  and  said  arrangements  for  his 
escape  had  been  made  and  a  ship  was  waiting  to  take 
him  across  the  Channel.     But  as  King  had  also  a 

177 


Sir  JVaher  Raleigh 

plan  in  mind,  Raleigh  naturally  preferred  to  trust 
himself  to  his  old  servant  rather  than  to  foreign 
hands.  Not  suspecting  the  treachery  of  his  base 
kinsman,  Stukeley,  who  had  procured  a  warrant 
authorizing  him  to  connive  at  and  appear  to  be 
shutting  his  eyes  to  Raleigh's  intended  flight,  he 
repaired  on  Sunday  night,  August  9th,  to  the  boat 
King  had  got  in  readiness,  with  two  wherries,  at  the 
Tower  Dock.  He  had  put  on  a  green  hatband  and 
a  false  beard,  and  was  accompanied  by  Sir  Lewis 
Stukeley  and  his  son  as  a  page  of  his  own.  *  Under 
the  visor  of  friendship'  Stukeley  played  his  double 
game,  pretending  the  liveliest  interest  in  the  plans 
for  Raleigh's  escape  while  all  the  time  he  was  keep- 
ing the  authorities  well  posted  up  in  every  move. 
He  saluted  Captain  King  as  he  was  entering  the 
boat,  and  asked  him  if  he  had  not  behaved  like  an 
honest  man,  to  which  King  responded  with  grim 
evasion  that  he  hoped  he  would  continue  so.  The 
oarsmen  had  scarcely  rowed  twenty  strokes  when 
they  became  nervous  and  complained  of  another 
boat  following  them.  Raleigh's  suspicions  were 
raised,  but  Stukeley  endeavoured  to  reassure  him, 
and  then  '  cursed  and  damned  himself '  for  venturing 
his  fortunes  with  a  runaway  who  had  so  little  trust 
and  confidence  in  his  guidance.  Persuaded  thus 
that  there  was  no  cause  for  alarm  they  proceeded, 
and  not  till  Woolwich  was  passed  did  Raleigh's  fears 
reawaken.  Now  all  Stukeley's  reassurances  and 
embraces  failed  to  convince  him,  and  on  coming  to 
Plumstead  he  gave  the  men  orders  to  turn  round. 
They  came  face  to  face  with  the  pursuing  boat,  and 
the  captive  saw  that  the  game  was  up,  but  he  still 

178 


'HE    SALUTED    CAPTAIN    KINC    AS    II  i: 
BOAT'—Po(jc  17S 


WAS    ENTERING   THE 


Betrayal 

did  not  realize  the  treachery  of  Stukeley,  who  em- 
braced him  and  suggested  ways  of  securing  his 
safety.  But  on  landing  at  Greenwich  the  traitor 
threw  off  the  mask,  which  he  had  worn  with  such 
Judas-like  deception,  and  handed  over  his  prisoner 
to  men  from  the  other  boat.  Then  it  was  that 
Raleigh  uttered  in  the  hearing  of  King  the  single 
reproach,  'Sir  Lewis,  these  actions  will  not  turn  out 
to  your  credit.'  Prophetic  words,  for  this  traitor 
was  discovered  later  'clipping  the  gold'  bestowed  on 
him  as  purchase  money  for  his  treachery,  and  retired 
to  the  lonely  wind-swept  Isle  of  Lundy,  in  the 
waters  of  the  Severn,  where  he  died,  raving  mad, 
his  name  held  in  everlasting  odium  and  execrated 
by  all. 

Captain  King,  staunch  and  loyal  to  the  last,  left 
his  master  only  at  the  Tower  gates  'to  the  tuition  of 
Him'  he  said  afterward,  'with  Whom  I  do  not 
doubt  that  his  soul  resteth.' 

Once  more  Sir  Walter  passed  in  through  the 
gloomy  portals  of  the  prison  house  with  which  he 
was  so  sadly  familiar,  from  which  he  had  emerged 
with  his  face  'towards  the  sunset'  full  of  new  hopes 
and  faith  in  the  success  of  his  mission  a  year  or  two 
before.  And  now  all  the  learned  lawyers  and  judges 
of  the  realm  cudgelled  their  brains  as  to  how  some 
plausible  legal  pretext  was  to  be  found  for  bringing 
Raleigh  to  the  block. 

In  Madrid  a  council  of  Dons  had  met  and  come 
to  the  decision  that,  after  all,  it  was  advisable  the 
execution  should  take  place  in  London  and  not  in 
Spain.  A  foreign  tribunal  therefore  condemned 
him  before  even  the  semblance  of  a  trial  had  been 

179 


Sir  JV^alter  Raleigh 

gone  through  at  home.  His  death  was  a  foregone 
conclusion,  but  the  way  in  which  it  was  to  be  com- 
passed was  still  debatable. 

The  condemnation  at  Winchester  fifteen  years 
earlier  was  to  serve  as  the  nominal  cause  of  his 
destruction,  but  it  was  necessary  to  trump  up 
additional  reasons.  The  Privy  Council  did  all  in 
their  power  by  constant  cross-questioning  to  wring 
admissions  of  guilt  from  Raleigh.  It  was  not 
sufficient  to  charge  him  with  piratical  intentions 
which  could  not  be  proved,  or  to  make  capital  out 
of  his  negotiations  with  France.  There  only  re- 
mained the  questionable  conduct  of  the  expedition 
and  his  collision  with  Spanish  subjects. 

Nothing  could  shake  Raleigh's  firmness  with 
regard  to  the  incidents  of  the  voyage.  He  affirmed 
unhesitatingly  that  San  Thome  was  not  counted  a 
Spanish  possession,  because  he  himself  had  annexed 
it  in  1595,  a  fact  which  the  Queen  had  recognized 
by  granting  Harcourt  and  himself  patents. 

The  whole  autumn  was  spent  in  these  futile 
arguments,  and  at  one  time  even  bets  were  being 
laid  at  court  that  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  would  in  the 
end  get  off  with  his  life.  His  friend.  Queen  Anne, 
pleaded  for  him  earnestly  from  a  bed  of  sickness. 
Vain  pleadings  these,  for  she  had  lost  long  since  any 
influence  she  may  ever  have  had  on  her  callous, 
coarse-minded  husband.  Even  Buckingham,  it  was 
said,  was  in  favour  of  his  life  being  spared,  but 
though  kingly  promises,  as  a  rule,  might  be  broken 
with  impunity,  a  promise  made  to  Spain  was 
apparently  sacred  and  James  intended  to  keep  it. 


180 


CHAPTER  XXVI:    The  End 

TRIAL  by  jury  in  Raleigh's  case  was  said 
to  be  legally  out  of  the  question,  because 
his  sentence  to  death  at  Winchester  still 
held  good,  and  for  civil  purposes  he  was  already 
practically  dead.  It  was  therefore  proposed  that 
the  Council  should  sit  in  secret  and  discuss  whether 
the  prisoner  should  be  brought  up  under  Habeas 
Corpus  before  the  King's  Bench.  This  was  the 
course  finally  decided  upon,  and  the  warrant  issued 
with  the  great  seal  affixed  on  'October  24th.' 

Ill  and  utterly  disheartened  as  he  was,  Raleigh 
had  been  able  to  withstand  the  machinations  of  his 
last  keeper.  Sir  Thomas  Wilson,  who  had  been  put 
in  charge  of  him  with  the  express  purpose  of  spying 
on  him,  by  winning  his  confidence.  This  person, 
distinguished  for  having  performed  many  services 
of  a  like  nature,  tried  to  ingratiate  himseK  with  the 
prisoner  so  as  to  trap  him,  during  familiar  converse, 
into  making  admissions  which  could  be  used  as 
evidence  against  him.  Wilson  intercepted  his  letters 
to  Lady  Raleigh,  and  promised  him  his  sovereign's 
pardon  if  he  would  tell  all  he  knew,  but  all  these 
measures  were  useless,  for  Raleigh  still  repudiated 
the  *new  crimes'  attributed  to  him.  He  had 
never  intended  to  be  a  pirate;  never  'sought  for 
a  Commission  from  France  nor  ever  had  any,'  and 
to  these  statements  he  adhered. 

He  was  roused  out  of  his  sleep  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  28th,  shivering  from  an  ague  and 
burning  with  fever.  They  took  him  in  this  con- 
dition from  the  Tower  to  appear  before  the  King's 
Bench   in    Westminster    Hall,    and    as    he   passed 

181 


Sir  JValter  Raleigh 

through  the  draughty  corridors  an  old  retainer  drew 
attention  to  the  fact  that  he  had  not  combed  his 
thick  grey  curls.  'Let  them  kam  it  that  have  it,'  he 
answered,  and  then,  to  bring  a  smile  to  the  old  ser- 
vant's woeful  face,  he  added, '  Peter,  dost  thou  know 
of  any  plaister  to  set  a  man's  head  on  again  when  it 
is  off?' 

On  his  arrival  before  the  judges,  Yelverton,  the 
Attorney- General,  called  for  execution  on  the  con- 
viction of  1603;  and  observed  *the  prisoner  hath 
been  a  star  at  which  the  world  hath  gazed,  but  stars 
may  fall,  nay,  they  must  fall  when  they  trouble  the 
sphere  wherein  they  abide.'  Chief  Justice  Mon- 
tague also  improved  the  occasion  with  a  rhetorical 
lecture,  and  then  asked  the  prisoner  if  he  had  any- 
thing to  set  forth  why  sentence  should  not  be  passed. 
He  tried  to  defend  the  Guiana  expedition,  but  was 
instantly  cut  short  and  told  he  was  not  speaking  to 
the  purpose. 

'AH  I  can  say  then,'  answered  Raleigh,  *is  that 
the  judgement  I  received  to  die  so  long  since  cannot 
now  I  hope  be  strained,  for  since  then  it  was  His 
Majesty's  pleasure  to  grant  me  a  commission  to 
proceed  on  a  voyage  beyond  the  seas,  wherein  I  had 
martial  power  on  the  life  and  death  of  others,  so 
under  favour,  I  presume  I  stand  discharged  of  that 
judgement,  by  that  commission  I  gained  new  life 
and  vigour;  for  he  that  hath  power  over  the  lives  of 
others  must  surely  be  master  of  his  own.' 

*The  commission  does  not  infer  pardon,'  was 
the  judge's  reply,  'because  treason  is  a  crime  which 
must  be  pardoned  by  express  words  not  by 
implication.' 

182 


The  End 

If  that  were  his  Lordship's  opinion,  said  Raleigh, 
he  coukl  do  nothing  but  put  himself  upon  the  mercy 
of  the  King.  Had  not  His  Majesty  been  exasperated 
anew  against  him  he  might  have  lived  a  thousand 
years  before  he  would  have  taken  advantage  of  that 
conviction.  He  begged  for  time  to  settle  his  affairs, 
and  for  pen,  ink  and  papers,  as  he  wished  to  relieve 
his  conscience  by  making  a  statement  in  writing  to 
satisfy  the  King.  His  last  shred  of  hope  had  been 
based  on  the  idea  that  the  commission  had  been  as 
good  as  a  pardon,  now  that  hope  was  gone  he  resigned 
\  himself  to  fate  with  perfect  calmness  and  dignity. 
He  even  had  a  'smiling  countenance'  as  he  was  led 
from  William  Rufus's  noble  hall  to  the  little  prison 
in  the  Gatehouse  of  Westminster,  where  he  was  to 
spend  his  last  hours.  The  craven  King,  who  had 
shamefully  doomed  the  most  distinguished  of  his 
subjects  to  suffer  death  to  please  a  foreign  power, 
kept  out  of  London  at  one  of  his  country  seats.  No 
doubt  he  indulged  in  his  favourite  pastime  of  gallop- 
ing heavily  after  the  hounds  in  pursuit  of  a  stag 
while  the  block  was  being  prepared  in  Palace  Yard 
for  the  sacrifice  of  his  human  victim. 

Here  the  last  chapter  of  Raleigh's  tragic  history 
was  to  be  closed  in  the  morning  of  Lord  Mayor's 
Day,  the  holiday  being  chosen,  as  it  was  hoped  that 
scenes  of  festivity  would  attract  the  crowds  in  other 
directions  and  prevent  a  popular  demonstration  at 
Westminster.  Everything  that  was  best  and  finest 
in  Raleigh's  character  shone  out  brilliantly  at  the 
end.  No  more  did  he  cringe  and  write  abject 
letters  beseeching  a  base  King  to  spare  his  life. 
Though  he  had  loved  and  clung  to  life,  he  did  not 

183 


Sir  Weaker  Raleigh 

shrink  from  death  now  it  stared  him  in  the  face; 
that  Death  which  he  had  apostrophized  so  grandly 
in  the  following  famous  passage:  'Oh  eloquent 
just  and  mighty  death,  whom  none  could  advise 
thou  hast  persuaded;  what  none  hath  dared  thou 
hast  done;  and  whom  all  the  world  hath  flattered 
thou  hast  cast  out  of  the  world  and  despised;  thou 
hast  drawn  together  all  the  far  stretched  greatness,  all 
the  pride,  cruelty  and  ambition  of  man,  and  covered 
it  all  over  with  these  two  narrow  words  "  ZTic  jac^^.  "  ' 
It  was  during  that  last  night  in  the  Gatehouse 
prison  that  he  wrote  on  the  fly-leaf  of  his  Bible: 

Even  such  is  Time,  that  takes  on  trust 
I  Our  youth,  our  joys,  our  all  we  have, 

And  pays  us  but  with  earth  and  dust; 
Who,  in  the  dark  and  silent  grave, 
When  we  have  wandered  all  our  ways. 
Shuts  up  the  story  of  our  days: 
But  from  this  earth,  this  grave,  this  dust 
My  God  shall  raise  me  up,  I  trust. 

Who  that  reads  these  last  two  lines  can  doubt  that 
Raleigh,  the  man  who  had  been  charged  so  lightly 
with  atheism,^  looked  forward  with  steadfast  faith 

^The  Captain  who  gave  such  instructions  as  the  following  was 
no  atheist:  'Orders  to  be  observed  by  the  commanders  of  the  Fleet 
and  Land  Companies  under  the  Charge  and  Conduct  of  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  Knight,  bound  for  the  South  Parts  of  America — given  at 
Plymouth  in  Devon  May  3rd  1617. 

'First,  because  no  action  or  enterprise  can  prosper  without  the 
favour  of  Almighty  God  the  Lord  and  Strength  of  hosts  and  armies  ye 
shall  not  fail  to  cause  divine  ser\'ice  to  be  read  in  your  ship  every  morn- 
ing and  evening,  in  the  morning  before  dinner  and  at  night  before  sup- 
per, or,  at  least  once  in  the  day  praising  God  every  night  with  singing 
of  psalms  at  the  setting  of  the  watch.  Secondly,  you  shall  take  special 
care  that  God  be  not  blasphemed  in  your  ship,'  and  so  on. 

18J. 


The  End 

to  the  Resurrection  as  he  was  drawing  near  the 
Valley  of  the  Shadow  through  which  all  have  to 
pass  ? 

It  may  have  been  reaction  and  relief  after  the 
prolonged  tension  of  hoping  against  hope  which 
gave  Raleigh  courage  to  assume  the  gay  air  of 
gallantry  with  which  he  met  his  end  and  won  the 
admiration  of  all  times.  As  he  came  from  West- 
minster Hall  to  the  Gatehouse,  sentenced  to  die  on 
the  morrow,  he  met  an  old  acquaintance  with  a 
cheerful  greeting,  and  'You  will  come  to-morrow 
morning,'  as  if  inviting  him  to  the  drama  in  which 
he  was  to  play  the  title  role.  *  I  do  not  know  what 
5'^ou  may  do  for  a  place.  For  my  part  I  am  sure  of 
one.     You  must  seek  what  shrift  you  can.' 

His  kinsman,  Thomas  Flynn,  who  visited  him  at 
the  Gatehouse,  rebuked  him  for  being  too  merry. 
*It  is  my  last  mirth  in  this  world,'  he  replied,  'do 
not  grudge  it  to  me.  When  I  come  to  the  sad  part- 
ing you  will  see  me  grave  enough,'  was  his  answer. 
The  Dean  of  Westminster,  Tounson,  came  to  offer 
him  spiritual  consolation,  and  was  struck  too  by  his 
demeanour  of  cheeriness  so  near  death.  '  He  seemed 
to  make  so  light  of  it  that  I  wondered  at  him.  But 
he  gave  God  thanks  that  he  never  feared  death.  He 
was  the  most  fearless  of  death  that  ever  was  known, 
and  the  most  resolute  and  confident,  yet  with 
reverence  and  conscience.' 

Deeply  pathetic  must  have  been  the  'sad  parting' 
that  night  from  the  beloved  one  to  whom  through  all 
vicissitudes  he  had  been  a  true  and  tender  husband. 
Lady  Raleigh,  broken-hearted,  came  at  dusk  to  take 
farewell  of  him,  and  they  conversed  together  for 

185 


Sir  TTalter  Raleigh 

several  hours.  She  had  up  till  the  last  prostrated 
herself  in  prayers  that  he  might  be  saved,  and  her 
boy  had  appealed  with  passionate  vehemence  to  the 
King  for  his  father's  life.  No  wonder  that  after- 
ward, when  the  Earl  of  Pembroke  brought  young 
Carew  Raleigh  to  court,  James  'liked  not  his 
countenance'  and  said  he  appeared  to  him  like 
the  ghost  of  his  father.  Of  the  boy,  his  poor 
parents  at  their  anguished  parting  had  not  courage 
to  speak.  They  confined  themselves  to  talking  of 
Raleigh's  future  vindication  in  case  he  should  not 
be  allowed  to  defend  himself  at  the  block.  In  a 
burst  of  grief  Lady  Raleigh  told  her  husband  of  the 
one  miserable  concession  that  all  her  petitions  had 
succeeded  in  wringing  from  the  Lords  of  the  Council. 
They  would  not  grant  her  his  life,  but  had  permitted 
her  the  right  of  claiming  his  body  after  death.  And 
as  the  hour  of  midnight  boomed  from  the  clock  of 
the  abbey,  and  she  had  to  wrench  herself  from  his 
arms,  he  said  gently: 

*It  is  well,  dear  Bess,  that  thou  may  est  dispose  of 
that  dead  which  thou  hadst  not  always  the  disposing 
of  when  alive.' 

After  she  was  gone  he  spent  the  hours  that  re- 
mained in  reading,  writing  and  musing.  Dean 
Tounson,  who  attended  him  to  the  end,  wrote  to  a 
friend:  'He  was  very  cheerful  that  morning  he  died; 
eate  his  breakfast  heartily  and  took  tobacco;  and 
made  no  more  of  his  death  than  it  had  been  to  take  a 
journey;  and  left  a  great  impression  on  the  minds  of 
those  that  beheld  him  .  .  .'  On  his  leaving  the 
Gatehouse  some  one  handed  him  a  cup  of  wine,  and 
when  asked  if  it  was  to  his  liking,  he  said,  *I  will 

186 


The  End 

answer  you  as  did  the  fellow  who  drank  at  St 
Giles's  bowl  as  he  went  to  Tyburn,  **It  is  a  good 
drink  if  a  man  might  but  tarry  by  it.'" 

He  received  the  Holy  Communion  early,  and  was 
led  forth  to  the  block  in  Palace  Yard,  wearing  a 
black  velvet  night-gown  over  a  hair-coloured  waist- 
coat, black  cut  taffetas  breeches,  and  ash-coloured 
stockings.  Under  his  hat  he  wore  a  'wrought  lace 
night-cap,'  which  he  threw  to  a  bald-headed  old  man 
in  the  crowd,  saying  that  his  need  of  it  was  greater 
than  his  own.  He  was  surrounded  by  sixty  guards. 
The  morning  was  cold  and  frosty,  and  some  work- 
men, who  had  made  furnaces  beneath  the  scaffold, 
asked  him  to  come  down  and  warm  himself  by 
them. 

There  was  no  reason  to  have  feared  that  the  right 
of  free  speech  would  be  refused  him.  He  spoke  for 
three-quarters  of  an  hour,  people  of  all  sorts  and 
degrees  hanging  on  his  lips.  In  spite  of  its  being 
Lord  Mayor's  Day,  the  crowd  was  enormous.  His 
stately  bearing  and  simple  dignity  profoundly  moved 
the  spectators. 

*I  thank  God  that  he  has  sent  me  to  die  in  the 
light  and  not  in  the  darkness'  was  his  first  ex- 
clamation, for  he  had  greatly  feared  that  he  would  be 
put  an  end  to  secretly  and  so  prevented  from  utter- 
ing his  vindication  in  public.  Then  he  apologized 
for  the  weakness  of  his  voice  owing  to  his  ague,  and 
was  afraid  he  would  not  be  heard  by  the  members  of 
the  Council  who  sat  in  the  window  near;  and  the 
Earls  of  Arundel,  Oxford  and  Northampton  answered 
that  they  would  come  down  to  him,  and  accordingly 
did  so,  and  stood  by  him  while  he  spoke.     With 

187 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

splendid  soul-stirring  eloquence  and  great  solemnity 
he  once  more  related  his  story,  replying  one  by  one  to 
the  charges  brought  against  him.  He  called  God  to 
witness  that  he  was  a  true  Englishman,  who  had  not 
held  treaty  with  the  French,  that  he  had  not  re- 
joiced ungenerously  over  the  death  of  Essex  and 
smoked  a  pipe  of  tobacco  during  his  execution,  that 
his  conduct  with  regard  to  the  last  exploration  of 
Guiana  had  been  straightforward  and  sincere.  In- 
dignantly he  exposed  the  lies  of  Stukeley  (whom 
nevertheless  he  forgave)  and  of  the  quack  Manourie. 
He  craved  God's  pardon  for  his  sins,  saying: 

*I  have  grievously  offended,  being  a  man  full  of  all 
vanity  who  has  lived  a  sinful  life  in  such  callings  as 
are  most  conducive  to  it.  For  I  have  been  a  soldier, 
sailor  and  courtier  which  are  courses  of  wickedness 
and  vice.'  Then  he  put  off  his  long  velvet  gown  and 
satin  doublet  and  made  ready,  calmly  and  cheerfully 
for  the  end.  *I  have  a  long  journey  to  go,'  he  said, 
*  therefore  I  must  take  leave.'  The  executioner, 
kneeling,  begged  his  forgiveness,  and  he  freely 
granted  it,  laying  his  hands  on  the  man's  shoulders. 
Next  he  asked  him  to  show  him  the  axe.  *  Pry  thee 
let  me  see  it.  Dost  thou  think  I  am  afraid  of  it?' 
And  after  testing  the  blade  with  his  fingers,  he  said 
to  the  sheriff,  '  This  is  a  sharp  and  fair  medicine,  but 
a  sound  cure  for  all  diseases.'  To  the  question  which 
way  he  would  lie  upon  the  block,  he  replied,  '  So  the 
heart  be  right,  it  little  matters  which  way  the  head 
lies.' 

When  the  headsman  should  have  dealt  the  fatal 
stroke,  he  hesitated,  though  Raleigh  had  twice  given 
the  signal.     Then  for  the  last  time  the  soft  per- 

188 


The  End 

suasive  voice  was  heard  admonishing,  *What  dost 
thou  fear?     Strike,  man!  strike!' 

And  the  blow  fell  which  severed  the  grand  grey 
head  of  Walter  Raleigh  from  his  wracked  and  ague- 
stricken  body,  to  the  eternal  shame  of  the  monarch. 
A  groan  of  indignation  and  disgust  rose  from  the 
crowd  as  the  head  was  thrust  into  a  red  bag,  a 
groan  that  was  echoed  as  the  news  spread  throughout 
the  land.  The  fearlessness  and  nobility  of  his  death 
bestowed  on  Raleigh  that  never-ending  popularity 
among  his  countrymen  which  in  the  pride  and  inso- 
lence of  his  prosperous  days  he  had  never  been  able 
to  attain.  Englishmen  execrated  more  than  ever 
the  proposed  Spanish  alliance,  and  James  himself 
soon  began  to  see  the  futility  of  having  put  to  death 
*a  man  who  was  able  to  have  done  him  service,  as 
useful  a  man  as  served  any  prince  in  Christendom.' 
Such  was  the  belated  praise  which  he  gave  Raleigh  in 
his  reproaches  to  Spain  when  it  was  plain  to  all  the 
world  that  Spain  had  outwitted  him  and  had  lowered 
the  prestige  of  England. 

The  day  after  her  husband's  execution  Lady 
Raleigh  wrote  a  pathetic  note  to  her  brother,  asking 
him  to  be  allowed  *to  berri  the  worthy  boddi  of  my 
nobell  hosban,  Sur  Walter  Raleigh  in  your  Chorche 
atBeddington.  .  .  .God  hold  me  in  my  wits.'  Why, 
after  this  request,  the  body  was  buried  in  the  chan- 
cel of  St  Margaret's,  Westminster,  no  one  knows. 
His  faithful  widow  preserved  and  cherished  the  head 
all  the  years  that  she  survived  him,  and  then  be- 
queathed it  to  their  son  Carew,  in  whose  grave  it  was 
buried.  In  the  next  reign  this  son  vainly  petitioned 
Charles   I   for   the   restoration    of    the    Sherborne 

189 


Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

estates,  and,  referring  to  his  father's  execution,  said 
that  *  Justice  was  indeed  blind  .  .  .  condemning  for 
things  contradictory,  for  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  was  con- 
demned for  being  a  friend  to  the  Spaniards  and  lost 
his  life  for  being  their  utter  enemy/ 

Borrowing  the  phrase  'things  contradictory' 
from  Raleigh's  son,  we  may  apply  it,  in  a  different 
sense  from  which  he  used  it,  to  his  father's  character. 
The  polished  courtier,  seaman,  soldier,  poet  and 
Virginian  planter  was  a  nature  compounded  indeed 
of  many  varying  elements.  We  have  seen,  in 
following  his  history,  how  capable  he  was  of  the 
highest  and  noblest  actions,  and  how  often  he  de- 
scended to  the  lowest  and  most  ignoble.  He  was  not 
born  too  soon  or  too  late.  As  Mr  Hume  says, 
Raleigh  was  '  a  child  of  his  age,'  the  spacious  age  of 
Elizabeth,  when  England  was  a  *  nest  of  singing  birds' 
teeming  with  the  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  and  crav- 
ing for  adventure  and  gold.  Raleigh's  faults  were 
the  faults  of  his  time,  yet,  even  allowing  this,  it  is 
difficult  to  reconcile  the  man  of  high  principle  with 
the  man  who  repudiated  the  rumour  of  his  marriage 
to  the  charming  maid-of-honour  when  she  was  al- 
ready his  wife,  or  the  brave  man  who  scorned  danger 
and  death,  with  the  grovelling  pleader  for  mercy  at 
the  hands  of  a  boorish  King.  Hard,  too,  is  it  to 
understand  how  the  high-minded  head  of  the  Sher- 
borne household,  the  tender  and  affectionate  hus- 
band and  kindly  father,  could  pen  anything  so  cold 
and  selfish  and  full  of  worldly  cynicism  as  'Instruc- 
tions to  his  Son  and  Posterity,'  which  rival  Lord 
Chesterfield's  of  a  later  date.  Harder  of  all  to  be- 
lieve that  the  author  of  the  SouVs  Errand,  palpitat- 

190 


The  End 

ing  as  It  does  with  lofty  sentiment  and  scorn  of  evil- 
doers in  high  places,  could  flatter  so  shamelessly  and 
pander  so  grossly  to  the  absurd  vanity  of  his 
Queen. 

Yet  when  all  is  said  and  done,  let  us  never  forget 
that  Raleigh's  ambition  was  not  all  for  self,  but  for 
the  nation's  good.  He  was  not  only  the  reckless 
gambler,  but  the  patriot  and  idealist,  the  first  to 
dream  of  planting  that  vast  empire  beyond  the  seas 
which  to-day  is  Britain's  chief  boast  and  glory.  For 
the  sake  of  this  ideal  he  became  the  'scourge  of 
Spain,'  for  this  he  lived  and  died,  and  as  Raleigh's 
eventful  career,  with  its  dazzling  opening  and  its 
tragic  end,  passes  again  in  review  before  our  eyes, 
like  pictures  from  the  romance  of  some  knight- 
errant,  we  think  of  the  words  Shakespeare  said  of 
another;  he 

Had  the  elements 

So  mixed  in  him  that  Nature  might  stand  up 

And  say  to  all  the  world,  'This  was  a  man.* 


BOOKS  CONSULTED 

^^WFE  OF  Sir  Walter  Raleigh:  with  his  History  of  the 

World.     William  Oldys.     1733. 
<::^=SfR  Walter  Raleigh:  a  Biography.     William  Stebbing. 
^:^HE  Works  of  Sir  W^alter  Raleigh  :  with  Letters  and 
Poems.     Thomas  Birch. 
The  Life  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh.     Arthur  Cayley. 
y^LitrS  AND  Letters.     9t  vols.     Edward  Edwards. 

,  Raleigh.     Edmund   Gosse.     (Men    of    Action    Series). 
^^         Macmillan. 

Aubrey's  Lives  of  Eminent  Men. 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh.     J.  A.  Taylor.     (Methuen's  Little 
.Biographies.) 
C>^i^  Walter  Raleigh.     Major  Martin  Hume. 
Spenser.     Dean  Church.     (Men  of  Letters). 
Great  Seamen  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.    Sidney  Lee. 


